Soul Searching
by PixieGirl13
Summary: Full Summery Inside: Being forced to be a camp counselor was the last thing Danny wanted that summer. To make it worse, Vlad is the owner. But, interestingly enough, the man is desperate to hide something from the ghost boy. Something dangerous haunts...
1. Chapter 1 The Evil Eyes of Happy Hills

Full Summary: Being forced to be a camp counselor was the last thing Danny wanted that summer. To make it worse, Vlad is the owner. But, interestingly enough, the man is desperate to hide something from the ghost boy. Something dangerous haunts the camp grounds. Not even Danny is sure what it is or how to keep himself and others from falling prey to it. But to figure out Vlad's deep secret and how to stop this thing, Danny is going to have to throw his vacation plans out the window and confront a horror ten times more disturbing than any ghost he's ever encountered.

A/N: Okay, let's get this show on the road! I don't have much to say but that this takes place right before Phantom Planet. This first chapter is kinda slow, I'm sorry, but it takes off quickly on the second chapter. With that said, please read and review! Thanks!

Disclaimer: I own none of the characters from this fic. Maybe one or two minor ones, but the rest are either from Danny Phantom or belong to Robert Muchamore, the author of the UK series, CHERUB.

Soul Searching

By: Pixiegirl13

Prologue

Shifting his cell phone to the other shoulder to keep the other from cramping up, James held up a shirt for close speculation. He spotted just two stains. It didn't look dirty or in the need of a wash. Sniffing the red fabric, the boy smiled as it passed the last and the most crucial part of the test. He folded it the best he could and shoved it into his suitcase along with the others that had passed.

"What's the name of this camp?" Kerry Chang, his girlfriend, asked from the other end of the cell phone.

She, like the rest of the CHERUB kids and teens, had been able to go off to the organization's summer house. James had just been flown back a week ago because he had been called to a mission. Disappointed that he had to miss most of his long awaited for summer vacation, James was satisfied enough to go on the mission because it was one of going undercover on the hostile and dangerous grounds…of a summer camp. It still didn't keep James from complaining about it, though.

Making a face to the non present Kerry, James held up the brochure of the camp. Reading with sarcastic cheerfulness, he recited the title and subtitle to his girlfriend. "Happy Hills Summer Camp," he said with a cruel grin. "Happiness is the beginning of a smile!" He rolled his eyes while saying, "Bloody boring is what I call it."

"Let me guess, you have to befriend some kid there that is related to the main target," Kerry said knowingly. "It's the same old boring mission."

"Actually, the geek I have to be friends with is not even related to the target," James said with some surprise. He lifted a shoe, sniffed into it, and threw it with the rest of the junk being packed. "He's the kid of the target's best friend in college. And this mission isn't even for MI5. It's for some bogus ghost hunting American group called the Guys in White. Lame! If you ask me, I think nothing exciting it gonna happen."

"But I'm sure you're going to make it fun," Kerry said. "With your recklessness, you're sure to burn every one of those Yank's cabins down by the end of the month."

James smiled at the thought. "Naw," he said with a wave of his hand, "I'm a counselor at this camp. Blowing up a camp is so seventh grade." An evil grin flashed across his face as he added, "Besides, I have a whole camp to try out some pranks that I've recently thought of. I'll be busy with a check list of pranks to use any explosives."

"Well, I'm going to miss you," Kerry said softly. "I miss you already."

James blushed, a longing smile on his lips. "You're just saying that because none of the guys there you can imagine snogging," he said slyly. "Admit it, Kerry, I'm irresistible."

"Oh, you've read me so well, James," Kerry said, going along with her boyfriend's cheesy romance. "I'd kiss you right now if a thousand miles weren't between us."

They giggled at their silliness.

"I'm going to miss you too," James said, scratching the back of his head from the discomfort of showing his vulnerable emotions.

"The standard," Kerry said with a cheer in her voice. "Email me whenever you get the chance. And a call or two won't hurt you."

"I'll try," James said with a sigh. "But Europe and North America do tend to be in two different time zones."

"Call, James," Kerry commanded with teasing forcefulness.

"Yes, mum," James responded. "Jeez. Next you'll be telling me not to look at any other girl while away."

"Do you want the lecture?" Kerry asked.

"I'm good," James said with a grin. "And if I mess around, I give you permission to beat me up when I get back. But I promise, no snogging while I'm at Happy Hills."

"Cheers," Kerry said. James heard her giggle on the other end before saying, "I have to go. We want to go four-wheeling before lunch. Have a _happy_ time, James."

"Funny," James said, a thin smile crossing his face. "You too, Kerry."

Hanging up, James picked up a pair of shorts from the pile to be tested. Sniffing it, he smelled rotten eggs. Gagging, the boy coughed out some curses at the disgusting odor. It was coming from one of the side pockets. Frowning, James forced a hand into one of them and froze as he felt something crunch.

"Aw! Yuck!" James yelled, taking his hand out. It was covered with the hot and gooey substance of the cracked eggs he had broken, along with a small piece of paper that had been in there. Furious, James watched in anger as his best shorts dripped with the thick liquid from that pocket.

Snapping his sharp, blue eyes to the note, he read it with a glare. It was from his little sister, Lauren.

"Evil witch!" he shouted in frustration. "Oh, you are so going to get it when I get back from this mission!" Sighing to keep his rising anger down, he ran a hand through his hair. He stopped when he realized that he had just pushed the egg slimy hand into his blonde locks.

"Crap," James muttered.

Chapter 1 The Evil Eyes of Happy Hills

Stressed. Stressed and depressed.

That's what I had. Every teen has it.

What teen wasn't stressed or depressed with having to get up everyday at six to catch a bus, go to school, deal with ignorant teachers who assign too much homework, smile at people you hate, go home to spend hours doing despised homework, and then go to sleep at midnight just to repeat that boring cycle again? Every teen depends too desperately onto weekends, holiday breaks, and the sweet freedom of summer. The life of a teenager is a mixed balance of being stressed or being depressed. That was life in general.

According to my sister, Jazz, I had too much of life.

That was just like her, analyzing everything to its finest detail and then taking it upon herself to fix the whole thing out in her little perfectionist way. Don't get me wrong, I love my sister. Ever since she told me she knew my ghost secret, my alter-ego life has been easier. Just…sometimes she drives me insane. It's what siblings do.

So that was how she got my parents to force me into summer camp. A camp counselor at Happy Hills Summer Camp, to be more specific. Yeah, I wanted to shoot myself. Like I wanted to spend a whole month taking care of little, smartass kids, trying to keep a canoe right side up, and singing cheesy songs around a campfire. That wasn't my ideal summer if you ask me.

This was summer break. It was three months of liberty to do whatever I wanted. Stupidly, I had recently been spending my hours either fighting ghosts or sleeping. Those were always the signs of me needing a break, but I should have been able to have that option to go to this camp or not.

Instead, Jazz got into both mom's and dad's heads to make them believe my life pretty much depended on me getting out of Amity Park and into the big, open wild. After that, I was destined to go. I hated her for it.

I also hated her for waking me up with a nudge of her elbow the second our bus stopped. I had been sleeping soundly, occupying my pessimistic thoughts with the nice darkness of dreamless sleep. I looked up at her emotionlessly, knowing anything that would come out of my mouth at that second would be hurtful.

"We're here, Danny!" she said with excitement. She was always excited. It bugged me, but I didn't say anything.

Of course she noticed this and said in a whisper, "Please, Danny, at least look a little bit happy. If you keep thinking you're going to have a bad time, you'll only have a bad time."

"Then I'll have a bad time," I muttered back at her. I hated myself for it, but I gave her my smart-alike smile that I knew she hated. I wanted to bring her joyful mood down to mine, which was pissed.

Her smile wavered but never left. She was a tough one, I'll give her that much. She sighed then, quickly packing her stuff into a small backpack as the rest of the teens were doing the same or getting off. Frowning, I did the same, practically shoving my headphones and MP3 player into my own backpack sitting between my legs on the dirty floor.

"Because you look so down, I guess I should tell you this now," Jazz said, watching me with her knowing eyes. I didn't even glance over to her, pretending not to care. She paused before saying, "If it makes you feel better, I invited someone else to come."

My eyes shot over to her, questioning her without even having to open my mouth. Sam or Tucker? To be truthful, I was desperate to hear the name Sam.

"Sam accepted, but she isn't a counselor," Jazz said, seeing my eyes widen with hope when she said that name. "Sam is going to be one of the junior nurses," my sister explained. "So she won't be here till the kids arrive in two days. Does that make you feel better?"

For a moment I just stared at her. It was hard getting over your hate for someone when they told you that they cared for you. So, I thanked her with a small grin and a quiet, "Thanks, Jazz."

She proudly lifted her head and said, "Don't mention it", which was her way of saying, "I know I'm the perfect sister." With that said, she picked up her backpack and started down the aisle of bus seats to the open door.

With the hope of some entertainment in two days, I accepted my fate and got up. I was the last off the bus. The bright sun temporally blinded me as I jumped the last step. The sweet scent of pine and fresh air was different to my nose, but energizing to my senses. For some reason with the promise of Sam, I was open to the forest that now surrounded me.

Maybe I really did need this vacation from Amity. I was almost getting high off the fresh air, I was that pathetic. And maybe…just maybe I had been more stressed and depressed than I had realized. With Vlad as the new mayor and so many other bad things going on the past few months, it was hard being the only superhero there to protect a ghost infested city. It was taking its toll on me.

But of course I never admitted it to myself. I didn't want to give Jazz the satisfaction of being right. More air to that proud head of hers couldn't be good.

"Hey! You, spacey black haired kid!" someone's shout suddenly interrupted my thoughts. I turned my head around to see a blonde teen around my age trying to yank his stuffed duffle bag out of the coach bus's side compartments. He was having no luck with it and clearly needed my help. "Can you lend us a hand, mate?" the kid asked, seeing that I was the only one there to do so. The rest of the teens were busy exploring the camp.

"Sure," I said with a shrug and started to walk over.

"Cheers," the teen said with a grin. His blue eyes rested on me for a moment, summing me up in a blink of an eye. I didn't notice his calculating expression. His British accent was the only thing I seemed to pick up.

"You from England?" I asked casually, grabbing onto the strap of his duffle bag that was under loads of other bags that were for some older counselors that were coming in on a later bus. I tugged a few times to see how stuck it was.

"Yeah," the kid said, "My mum got a job in the States a few months ago. I think if you lift that big one up a little it will be able to slip out with a few yanks." He pointed to the bag he wanted lifted.

After a few useless tries, frustrated grunts, and some swearing mostly from the English boy, we got his bag out. We were sweating and panting by the time I got mine out as well. Sitting on our bags to cool down, we took in our home for the next month.

It was forest all around. Any kind of North American tree: pine, oak, dogwood, you name it, was like an overwhelming fortress of green. The camp ground itself was nice and new, opening for its first time to kids around the US. The wooden cabins were spread throughout the area of gravel pathways. From our sitting place, I couldn't see much.

All I knew was that it was going to be better than that time at camp when Wulf showed up out of nowhere with Walker on his tail. That camp had sucked. This one was nice looking. My only worries now were the temperatures of the shower water and the quality of food. But so far things were looking up.

"Jeez, I'm gonna miss civilization after a month of this," the kid beside me muttered. I raised an eyebrow at him, but didn't feel like saying anything. He just sighed before putting on a smile and getting to his feet. "Well, cheers, kid," he said. "You got a name?"

"Danny," I answered, "Danny Fenton. And you?"

"Joseph Worthington," the boy said, "But you can call me Seph."

I got up and said, "I guess we better get to the mess hall for that mandatory first meeting with the camp owner. I mean, unless you don't mind getting yelled at, we should be on our way."

"You don't have to tell me twice," Seph said with a grin. "Let's go."

Picking up our duffle bags, we set out of the dusty parking lot in front of the camp and into our new home. Soon, we were surrounded by boys and girls our age and older running around the cabins, getting to know each other with smiles and laughs. It was like first day of school all over again…just with all new faces. I instantly felt like an outsider. I've always been that way in crowds.

"Hey, we have the same cabin," Seph said with a grin. We had both ended up as counselors to Cabin 2. "That makes introductions easier, I guess," he said while hastily shoving the door open. Carelessly, he threw in his duffle bag, grabbed mine, and did the same. "Packing can wait till after this boring meeting."

Seph was an odd one. In any normal circumstance, we would hate each other. He was strong, lithe, and fit the perfect jock stereotype with a cocky and arrogant attitude. He and Dash would make great friends. But because we were both counselors for the same cabin, we were giving each other a chance to be friends. He was cool, but I wasn't sure if I liked him so much.

"Agreed," I said, letting him throw my backpack into the dark cabin as well. Boy, were we going to live like real guys for the next few days. Moms just don't understand that a messy room is a real room. Just because a room looks like a tornado blew through it, it doesn't mean guys don't know where everything is.

By then the rest of the camp was shuffling over to the mess hall. The cement building was in the middle of the complexes of cabins. It was bigger than the rest of the buildings surrounding it, large enough to hold a few hundred starving kids and teens.

Stepping inside, I could feel the cool AC system doing its work. I hadn't realized how hot it was outside till I walked in. The feeling inside the mess hall was alive with the buzz of conversation and excitement. I couldn't help but smile as Seph and I went around introducing ourselves to other cabin counselors. Everyone was shaking hands and smiling warm welcomes. It was nice. It wasn't like first day of school, I decided.

The older counselors put us teens all back into order after a few minutes. We were assigned to different tables by our numbers. Seph and I collapsed into our folding metal chairs at Table 2, talking about videogames and violent movies that we'd recently seen.

It was odd, being normal. For the past few months my life had been turned upside down with my whole ghost abilities. Yeah, I like fighting ghosts. Actually, I love it. Nothing feels better than flying at the speed of a jet over Amity Park or punching the annoying Box Ghost's face in. Just sometimes its hard getting in a good balance between the normal life of being a teen and the high speed one of a ghost superhero. Lately, my superhero side had been out weighing the other.

I really needed this break.

"Good evening, Happy Hill's young counselors!" a familiar voice boomed out of large speakers on each side of the mess hall. The room quieted down for the person speaking. All eyes looked up and over to the small stage at the back of the room where the owner of the camp stood with a microphone.

The instant I saw him I froze.

It was Vlad Masters. Vlad Masters was the owner of Happy Hills Summer Camp!

A/N: Dun, dun, dun! By the way, the beginning with James is supposed to be a bit confusing, but it will make sense later on in the fic. Hope you guys enjoyed the first chapter! Expect the next update next weekend! See ya then!


	2. Chapter 2 Bathroom Interrogation

A/N: Wow! I got a lot of reviews for that first chapter. You guys make me one very happy girl. And I'm sorry I didn't respond to any of your reviews. My computer likes to give me a lot of crap at random times. This week my G didn't work on my keyboard, and my computer doesn't use anything wireless, so I was stuck without a G till just yesterday where I had to switch out my normal keys to a game keyboard. My keyboard has two different keyboards that you can switch in and out. Now I have this little mini one that has some keys in the wrong places. I'm forced to get used to it. Oh well. Enough of my random life! Enjoy chapter two!

Disclaimer: I do not own any Danny Phantom or CHERUB characters.

Chapter 2 Bathroom Interrogation

Slamming my dinner tray down onto the table, I wasn't in a very good mood. I hadn't even spent a night at Happy Hills and I was sick of it and its owner, Vlad Masters.

The whole afternoon I was just screaming inside, ready to yell in anger and frustration. Who the hell did Vlad think he was? Apparently an expert at owning a camp because everyone seemed to like him even though he banned all electrical devices. I thought for sure the teens would revolt when the guy sprung the news about no cell phones or MP3 players. But of course they all eventually fell to his "charm". I wanted to puke.

With narrowed eyes I glared at my steaming food before me. It didn't look anything like the mystery meat Casper High always served for lunch. For once in my life, something besides fast food was in front of me that looked eatable. I should have been digging in, but the thought of Vlad being there was as unappetizing as grease literally dripping off a slice my pizza on Pizza Friday at school.

Instead of taking my angry glare out on my food, I looked up at Vlad who was conversing with an older leader on the stage. He had that smug smile on his face, the one I hate. He was torturing me even without me knowing. He probably didn't even know I was there yet.

I thought for once I'd have a normal vacation and enjoy some free time. With Vlad here I'd have to go into overtime as ghost boy. I couldn't just let the fruit loop peacefully own and run a camp with the threat of him doing something horrible. It was my duty as superhero to at least snoop around his office or something. It was going to be annoying if I did find something that Vlad was planning.

My vacation ruined.

"Why do you keep glaring at him?" Seph asked, dropping his tray down across from me. Utensils clanked and food splattered across the gray plastic table. He plopped into his seat with a sour expression on his face. Picking up a plastic fork, he started to spear his food with sharp, angry movements.

I didn't say anything as I took my eyes off my enemy and watched Seph eat. He shoved boat loads of food into his mouth, barely taking time to chew before swallowing. Finally he took a big swing of his drink and said, "At least I have a reason to be pissed with the guy. I had a bloody laptop that he confiscated! My girlfriend back in the UK is going to kill me when she realizes that I can't email or call her. So why are you pissed at him?"

"I know him," I muttered back. "My mom and dad knew him when they were in college. I didn't know he owned this camp till I got here."

"That still doesn't explain why you hate him," Seph stated, using a spoonful of pudding as if it was a pointed finger. The chocolate dessert dropped off the utensil and into my cup of water, making a small splash. Seph didn't notice my look of disgust.

"He's creepy," I warned my cabin mate. "Every time he gets the chance, he hits on my mom."

Seph's blue eyes widened as he shoved another spoonful of pudding in his mouth. He then burst out laughing. "That is totally nauseating!" he said, shaking his head at the thought. "Wow. Can you say horny old man?"

I couldn't help but smile a little. "I've told him to get a cat," I said with the roll of my eyes. "But apparently he won't settle for less."

Seph laughed, practically choking on his food. "That's a pretty good one, mate," he said with a giggle. "I'd hate the dude too if he was trying to get in bed with my mum." A shiver went down his spine as he muttered, "Disgusting."

For a while we were silent…well I was silent. Seph wasn't so great with table manners, I'll say that. The British kid was like a topless blender when he came into contact with food. It was like a car wreck. It's horrible but you can't stop watching.

Suddenly Seph's head shot up from his intake of food, a thoughtful look on his stuffed face. Swallowing, I saw that he was really giving me a sly smile. I didn't say anything, already hating his idea.

"I have an idea," he told me in a loud whisper so to keep his voice in only our table's ear shot.

Hating to be the kill joy, I said, "Yeah?"

"You hate this Masters guy because he wants to date your mum," Seph said, "And I want my laptop back so to keep my girlfriend at peace. I say we sneak into Master's cabin, get my laptop back and maybe your MP3 player or something, and give this dude a prank of a lifetime. What do you think?"

"You're kidding, right?" I asked with a chuckle. The last thing I needed was to be sneaking around in my arch-enemy's cabin with Seph the delinquent boy. I'd rather do my sneaking at night as my alter-ego and completely alone.

"No!" Seph said, that mischievous smile still planted on his face. "You know you want to do it, Danny. You're just scared."

"I'm not sc…," I snapped back.

"Hey, I understand," Seph cut me off. He raised a hand as if to make the now hostile air between us calmer. He then flicked me a knowing evil grin before saying, "I'll be here when you finally change your mind." He then got up with his empty tray and walked off.

"Like that's ever gonna happen, dude," I muttered, watching him vanish into the crowd of teens.

-The Next Morning-

Closing my weary and sleep laden eyes, I stood motionless under the harsh blast of hot shower water. Knowing the other guys would be pushing and messing around in the morning for a shower, I wanted to by-pass the hassle of waiting in the line of humiliation. I always prefer to shower alone.

What was I going to do?

That question had me up for hours my first night of camp Happy Hills. It was going to be hard getting by with Vlad there to watch my every move. It was already hard going to sleep knowing that psychopath was out there plotting something evil.

Strange enough, the freak hadn't even acknowledged my presence. We had made brief eye contact during his first speech to the campers, making him stumble for a second to my delight. But that was it. He hadn't even confronted me yet. It was weird…and highly suspicious.

Scrubbing my black locks with eye stinging shampoo, I thought about talking to Jazz. She would have some answers, but not much. She was still considered a hinder to us when ghost fighting. I mean, she didn't even know that Vlad owned the camp! How's that for genius sister? I didn't expect her to give me any good answers, but she would have something to go by. I hated to do this all by myself.

Jeez, I wished Sam was there! She always knew what to do. But sadly, I wouldn't be able to hear that reassuring voice of hers till the next day. Smiling slightly, I realized I missed her.

I toweled off, feeling better after the shower. Maybe this day would be better. It was a hopeless thought as I pulled on my clothes and pushed away the shower curtain…to reveal Vlad Plasmius standing there!

"Ah!" I screamed in surprise, taking a step back from my smiling adversary.

Before I could turn ghost, Vlad pulled out a specter reflector belt and snapped it around my waist. Locking it into place, the man took a step back to get a good look at his handy work. He held the key up, waiting for my reaction.

"Where…where did you get this?" I screamed at him in confusion.

"Oh, I had a fun time going through yours and Jazz's suitcases the other afternoon to get rid of any technology that would prevent you young ones from experiencing the fullness of nature," Vlad said, making sure my quick grab for the key was unsuccessful. "Besides your thermos, I found this and the key," he said, pointing to my belt for identification. "Comfy?"

"What do you think?" I growled in response.

"Good," Plasmius said, his evil smile returning. "Then let's have our little talk."

"Get this stupid belt off me, then I'll talk," I demanded. It wasn't like he was going to keep me there…was it? The question gave me a flash of panic. My stubborn frown faded into one of alarm and hesitation.

Vlad threw his head back and laughed at my fear. "My dear boy," he sneered, "You have no clue what you have gotten into, have you?"

Before he could get to me, I dropped to the wet floor and rolled under the metal stall to the next shower cubicle. Slipping on the soap laden tiles under my bare feet, I sprinted forward. I threw the shower curtain away and ran right into my enemy head on by mistake.

Vlad was smooth and quick in his movements as he seized my wrist, spun me in his desired direction, and kicked me into a toilet stall. His foot made painful contact with my stomach, driving the air right out of me. Off balance, I stumbled backwards and hit my head hard against the stall's door.

Gasping for precious air, I fell to my knees while holding my aching stomach. I looked up just in time to see Vlad's heel collide with my forehead. Wincing, I went with the blow and landed on the toilet itself. Stars burst across my blurry vision as my head whacked into the porcelain tank. Any normal person would have given up at staying awake by now and would have passed out. I was used to fighting the urge of blackness and staying with life.

Groping for some support, I hooked my thumbs around the toilet seat and pushed myself up and away from the advancing Vlad. This was going down hill fast. I hadn't even gotten a chance for a punch. I was useless without my powers against this guy.

"Hold still, boy!" Vlad ordered, grabbing one of my wrists. He pulled out a pair of handcuffs and snapped one side of them on the wrist he was holding. Had he planned this whole thing? Why would he feel the need to bring handcuffs with him otherwise?

"Get off!" I yelled. I lifted a bare foot to fend the man off, but he simply used his other hand to grab it and throw it off to the side. He worked swiftly as he looped the handcuffs around the backside of the toilet. It didn't take long for him to catch my other wrist and snap the cuffs in place.

I was stuck to a toilet.

"Now you'll talk," Vlad said darkly, folding his arms in front of his chest and glaring down at me.

"Let me go!" I shouted wildly. Panic fueled me as I struggled uselessly against my cuffs. What was he going to do to me? He wasn't going to kill me, was he? Millions of these types of thoughts flashed across my brain, making my heart rate sky rocket and my breathing ragged.

"You aren't going anywhere till we have our little talk," Vlad stated. He leaned down so we were face to face. I recoiled, afraid of his touch as he traced a finger across my jaw line. Wincing, I could feel his finger produce a spark of electricity from the deathly belt now stuck to my waist.

"What do you want?" I finally asked, pushing away the fear rising in my chest.

Vlad flashed me a triumphant smile as he stood back up. "Why did you come here, Daniel?" he asked.

"I didn't want to come," I spat back truthfully, "Jazz convinced my parents it would be good for me."

"Likely story," Vlad said with the roll of his eyes. Careful now to prevent himself from getting zapped by my belt, he flashed back into his human form. He then lifted his foot and lightly placed it on my bruised stomach. "Now tell me why you really are here."

"I just told you the truth!" I said, frustration running deep in my voice. "What more do you want?"

That earned me a sharp blow to my stomach. I tried not to give him the pleasure of seeing me in pain by keeping my yell down in my throat. Instead, I coughed out a curse and used my feet to push away from the man towering over me. His boot was still sitting snuggly in my gut when I returned my glare to him.

"That was the truth, Vlad," I said through clenched teeth. "I had recently been spending too much time fighting ghosts. My parents noticed my tired and flighty actions and decided the great outdoors would be a grand vacation. Apparently, they were wrong."

Vlad leaned down and asked smugly, "You want another kick in the stomach?"

My only answer was collecting as much spit as possible in my mouth and flinging it into the man's face. Jeez, I hated him! That move was bound to happen at some point. It felt good.

Vlad sharply recoiled. Using the back of his hand, he slapped me across the face so hard I swear I heard some of my neck vertebra crack out of place. The coppery taste of blood exploded in my mouth from me biting my tongue. Squeezing my eyes shut, I had to fight the tears threatening to escape the edges of my eyes.

I could literally feel the sting of his hand print on my cheek, and my tongue throbbed in pain. I leaned to the side and spat out a massive wad of blood diluted with saliva. I used my shoulder to wipe off the excess on my mouth, staining my shirt a bit. I then glared darkly up at Vlad. The anger was boiling inside of me.

"What is this, an interrogation?" I snapped at him after a moment of silence between us. "Was it a crime for me to come here or something? What is it that you want from me?"

"I ask the questions," Vlad said coolly. He grabbed my chin and forced me to look him in the eyes. "What do you know about this camp?" he asked.

"Why do you want to know?" I shot back. Suddenly I was enlightened. "You're hiding something, aren't you?" I said. My confidence was beginning to rise now. "It has to be something pretty big for you to go and trap me in a bathroom stall for an interrogation. You want to make sure I don't know anything, that's why you're asking me all these dumb questions."

"Well, aren't you the bright one," Vlad sighed in irritation. "Now tell me what you know so we can get on with our lives. As you can see, you aren't going anywhere till I get the answers I want."

"Well," I said, pretending to think hard, "I know that you suck." I shrugged. "That's it. I'm a C student. I don't have to know much."

"If this wasn't so serious, I'd love to hear your witty banter," Vlad said. Grabbing my left leg, he began to slowly turn my bare foot. "You won't wear that annoying cocky grin if you ended up with a broken ankle on your second day at Happy Hills," he said, still twisting. "We can say it was an accident. The morning dew on the grass was wet. You slipped, landed on your ankle, and…_crack_."

"No, Vlad," I said in a rush. "What do you think you're doing? Are you crazy?"

Now this was going out of control! It was less interrogation and more torture technique. The anger left and the fear returned. I had no doubt he was actually going to break my ankle if I didn't say anything.

"Tell me what you know, Daniel, and maybe this little freak accident won't happen," Vlad said calmly. He was still turning. My ankle by now was burning; ready to snap at any second. It was all I could do not to cry out in pain.

"I don't know anything!" I told him. "I didn't even know you owned Happy Hills till yesterday! Now let me go before you break something! Please!"

"What about the land?"

"What?" I cried. "I don't know anything about the stupid land!"

"Maybe I should sprain it for good measure," Vlad thought out loud with his sardonic humor. "That spit in the face was uncalled for."

"Okay, okay!" I said quickly. My ankle was in a spasm of pain. My brain couldn't function. Desperately, I tried to remember anything from the brochure I had read only once. "It was a coal mining town," I said. "I don't know, it used to be a ghost town before you rebuilt cabins and called it Happy Hills. It was on the brochure."

Vlad released my ankle without a word. I pulled my foot away with a deep sigh of relief. I kept a watchful eye on my enemy as I tried to calm myself down. It looked like the questioning was over, but I couldn't be sure. I had never seen Vlad so intense. Sure, he's meant me harm numerous times. But it was different in that situation. He was exceedingly dangerous, and it wasn't until that day that I finally saw the full extent of it. He was scary.

"We'll have another talk like this one some time soon," Vlad finally said, his voice emotionless. He bent down, smiling slightly when noticing me withdraw. With one hand he grabbed the chain of the cuffs and turned them intangible so they slipped off my wrists. "Have a fun time at Happy Hills, Daniel," he said as his farewell before disappearing right in front of my eyes.

With Vlad gone, I could finally stand up, but I didn't. For a moment I just sat on the toilet to collect my scrambled thoughts. "Boy, was that a nightmare," I muttered to myself. At least the encounter told me that Vlad really was planning something…something he _really_ didn't want me getting involved in. It was now my job to submerge myself right into his evil plan.

Standing up, I cried out as my stomach muscles protested to move. I sat back down, pulling up my shirt for inspection. A tight frown formed on my lips as I saw a basketball sized bruise there. That was going to be hard to hide…or find a good lie for. Great.

"Wait…he didn't unlock my belt," I observed out loud. It dawned on me that he had done that on purpose. I couldn't go ghost if I had this thing stuck on me for the rest of the month! "I'm going to kick his ass for this!"

-Breakfast-

"Why the wicked grin?" Seph asked as he set his tray down at our table. He grabbed the bottle of syrup and poured half its contents on his stack of pancakes. "I love camp food," he sighed in delight as he cut into his steaming breakfast.

"I'm in," I said suddenly.

Seph was in mid bite as he looked up at me, brief surprise on his face. He put down his fork load of fluffy pancake smothered in sweet syrup and returned my grin with his own. He picked up his glass of orange juice as if making a toast.

"Cheers," was his only response to my decision. He took a big gulp of juice before returning to his meal.

And like that, I was in on the plan.

Vlad Masters was going to regret ever making this camp by the time I was through with him.

A/N: Oh, Vlad is gonna get it if he's not too careful. And to clear it up with some of you readers, CHERUB is not a TV show or anything. It is a UK book series by the author Robert Muchamore. It's hard to find it. The only place I can get the amazing series is at Barnes and Nobles or on eBay. If interested, go look for it. It's like a modern, more realistic Alex Rider series and ten times better. The next chapter of this should be out next week. See you guys there!


	3. Chapter 3 Ghost Goo Revenge

A/N: Sorry for the bit of delay, dudes. I had little sleep over thing with a friend and had no time to update. And sorry I didn't get the chance to respond to your reviews. My week has been busy getting graduation project done. But thank you guys so much for the reviews! They were awesome! Please enjoy chapter 3.

Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom or CHERUB characters.

Chapter 3 Ghost Goo Revenge

"This is crazy!" I hissed at Seph, furious with myself at the moment for ever changing my mind on his ridiculous offer.

"Crazy? Crazy how?" Seph asked, shooting me a sneaky grin that I had soon found out to be his trademark symbol of character.

"We can't do this in broad day light, Seph," I explained in a whisper. "If we're seen, we're gonna get caught!"

We were skipping a young counselor meeting in the Mess Hall an hour before lunch to pull off our little prank on Vlad. I thought we were going to do this trick at night, where there was little chance of being seen and caught. But apparently my ever recurring bad luck thought otherwise and paired me up with an adrenaline freak who wanted to do this stunt at the least convenient time.

Seph had rushed into our cabin five minutes before we had to be at the Mess Hall. He had flung open the door with a loud crash, surprising me enough to make me give a small shout of alarm. A mischievous grin was on his face and an evil twinkle in his eyes as he paused to catch his breath.

"Now," was all he said before lunging into the bunk bed filled room to grab my wrist.

"Now?" was my only question before he had yanked me all the way through the camp till we got close to Vlad's private cabin.

Master's lodge was bigger than a regular cabin, combining his office and living space into one. It had a quaint, bucolic look to it and was made entirely from wooden logs criss-crossing each other on the corners in perfect order. It looked like a life sized model of those mini logs I used to play with as a kid.

Seph and I were hiding behind an empty cabin, the teen counselors living in it being good little kids and already at the Mess Hall for the meeting. As I looked out around the camp, a chilling feeling came over me. The place being so empty was creepy. It felt hollow, deserted…like the ghost town I had read it was. The only sound was the breeze brushing through the tree's leaves. There were no usual animal noises. No bird songs, no annoying squirrels barking at you, not even the occasional bug buzzing past your ear. Not a good sign.

"We won't get caught because everyone is at the Mess Hall," Seph told me. "And the best part about this plan is that Vlad Masters will be no where near his cabin while we do this." His plan made sense. At least he hadn't made it up from the top of his head.

"Okay," I said with a nod. After what Vlad did to me that morning, I was determined to get him back. The fear of getting caught wasn't going to get in my way. In the back of my mind I knew Jazz was going to reprimand me for skipping a meeting, but I didn't care. She didn't have to deal with the fruit loop like I had to.

"Let's go, mate!" Seph said with excitement in his voice. He jumped out from behind the cabin after looking around to make sure no one would see us. I was right behind him as we snuck across the gravel pathway toward the cabin's front porch. We bounded up the stairs and crouched down in front of the door.

"It's probably locked, you know," I stated. "Shouldn't we use a window or something?"

"Not a problem when you know how to pick locks," Seph said as he took out a credit card from his back pocket. I looked at him incredulously, giving my odd friend a snort of disbelief. "Watch and be amazed," Seph said confidently.

I have to say the kid surprised me when after only a few minutes he had the door swinging open. We jumped into the cabin, quickly closed the door after us, and smiled at each other. We were in!

"Where did you learn that trick?" I asked him with a chuckle.

Without skipping a beat, Seph answered, "I had a lame dad that either spent his time getting drunk on the couch or busting into warehouses at night and stealing stuff. At some point I was bound to pick up some of his talents before he was caught and arrested. My mum devoiced him after that and got a job in the States. She thought camp would get me to understand the American culture better. And that's how I got here. What's your story? For some reason I don't find you as the type who would volunteer to work at Happy Hills for a whole bloody month."

As he gave me a rather short summary of his recent life story, we traveled further into Vlad's domain. The freaky part was the fact that it looked so normal. The first room was a waiting lounge. It was complete with antler-made couches, a large stone fireplace, and thousands of glass eyed animals staring down at us from their perches on the walls. Sam would have had a fit.

"Well, you're right about me not wanting to come," I told Seph while looking around curiously. "My control freak sister saw that I looked depressed and decided I needed the smell of fresh air every morning to cure me. She convinced my parents, and after that I was bound to go."

"Nice," Seph said sarcastically. "That's why I'm an only child." He pointed to a door in the back while saying, "How 'bout you check out where that door goes. I'll take the dude's office." I nodded and we went our separate ways.

To my luck, the door I opened went into Vlad's private suite. I didn't take the time to observe the small kitchen or living room as I rushed to the bedroom with a mission in mind. Determination was set in my blue eyes, making me almost plow the door down to the room.

Fervently, I went through the place. I pulled out his things from his bed side table, scavenged through his dresser full of clothes, looked under the bed, and even lifted up his mattress. But I didn't find the main thing that had motivated me to pull this risk.

"You got to be kidding me," I growled in frustration. Quickly, I stormed out of the bedroom, my narrowed eyes darting around for the thing I wanted so badly. "Where would he hide it?" I almost screamed when not finding it anywhere in the living room.

I was ready to smash the TV sitting there to see if he had put it in there. I had to keep my emotions steady. Any trace of ghost power would give me a shock to remember from the belt tightly pressing into my bruised gut. The cool metal against my skin was like a bitter reminder of my grave situation with the man.

Spinning around on my heel, I spotted the kitchen…and my goal. The man had the audacity to leave it right there on the kitchen counter for the world to see, as if it was a simple thing like car keys. His prideful downfall was my delight and joy.

"Idiot," I whispered in triumph as I picked up the Specter Reflector's only key. With a simple turn, I was free of my deathly binds. I had all the liberty to go ghost. My bad day just got better suddenly.

"Find anything besides that ugly belt?" Seph asked from the doorway. I stifled a gasp of surprise as I looked up at him. He looked how I felt, as if he had gained some advantage over an enemy and was soon to win. His bright grin was different from his sly one. He held up his laptop with victory. Both our quests had been successful!

"Not yet," I answered. Working quickly, I closed the belt and locked it into place. I set the thing on the kitchen counter where I had found the key. Crossing over to the closet next to the refrigerator, I pocketed the key. I so wanted to see the look on Vlad's face when he saw the locked belt and realized I was free to be ghost boy.

I opened the closet, not knowing what to expect. Seph ran to join me as I stood there in shock. He peered into the darkness with confusion on his face. The whole cabinet was full of white plastic bags with the black and yellow hazardous sign on them. Seph was clueless, but I knew exactly what they were from years of dealing with the contents because of my parents. And I had a pretty good idea on how to use them.

"What do you think are in these bags?" Seph asked in marvel.

"Ghost goo," I said with a wicked grin. "The technical term is ectoplasm residue, but ghost goo doesn't make me give a long explanation to you."

"Wait, how do you know this?" Seph asked suspiciously.

"My parents are two the world's best ghost hunters," I explained quickly as I grabbed a squishy white bag. "I deal with this kind of stuff all the time. You know how hard it is to clean up my parent's lab each week when a layer of this green crap is on everything?"

Seph wasn't on my term of thinking anymore. He looked more thoughtful as he observed the bags more carefully now, noticing the hazardous sign with a frown. "Why would a camp counselor have the need for these?" he asked.

Why so many questions suddenly?

I was tired of answering so I just shrugged while saying, "I have no clue. Vlad used to research ghosts with my dad and mom in college. Maybe he is still looking into them in his free time." It wasn't really a lie, but Seph didn't need to know about Vlad Masters and his ghost side…or mine for that matter.

"No offense, but I don't believe in ghosts," Seph told me.

"Really?" I asked, grinning despite myself. It was funny how anyone not familiar with Amity Park was such a nonbeliever. "Why do you say that?"

"Well, I've never seen one for that matter," Seph said, "And I've never felt any 'supernatural' beings. It's just a hoax." I laughed boldly in his face as I heaved up my bag of ectoplasm goo. "What?" he asked, "Have you ever seen a ghost before?"

Boy did he need to get out more.

"Trust me, Seph, ghosts are real," I said. "Stick around me for the next month and you're bound to see something. Let's just say that my family has become something of a ghost magnet."

I don't know why I was telling him all this. I didn't need Seph hanging around me just so he could see a specter, especially when the time came for me to go ghost. Actually, I didn't need to give Seph more reason for him to hang out with me. I wasn't here to make new friends. I was here for superhero work. Why am I such an idiot sometimes?

Don't answer that question.

"Okay," Seph said with his grin returning. His thoughtful and serious moment was done as quickly as it started. "I'll take you up on that offer," Seph continued. "If I don't see a ghost at all this month, the last day of camp you have to jump off the pool's diving board…naked."

Of course it was a dumb bet. Any normal, sensible person would say no to it and leave it at that.

"Add in fifty bucks and it's a deal," I said in a rush, grinning despite the stupidity of the bargain.

"Done!"

And with the quick shake of hands, the deal between us was made. It was only at that moment where we were giving each other prideful and goofy grins that I felt a connection between us. Before, we were merely trying to deal with each other because we were polar opposites on the popularity line. Now it looked like we could actually be friends.

"Now," I said, shoving a sack of green goo into Seph's hands, "Who wants to douse this cabin in ectoplasm residue?"

Seph's eyes lit up with the fabulous idea of a prank. "Welcome to the dark side, my friend," he said evilly.

"Oh, you have taught me well," I said with a laugh. And with that exchange, we wasted no more time and went to work.

-Few Hours Later-

I strolled into the Mess Hall that night feeling pretty good with myself. I got my ghost abilities back, gained a good yet slightly evil friend, and got the ultimate payback on Vlad. The fruit loop had it coming to him. Also, I knew something fishy was going down in this camp because of Vlad's and mine "conversation" back in the bathroom this morning. A little bit of spying here and there, and I was sure to foil the dude's plan.

Things were looking up. Of course it is the law of physics that what goes up must come down. Trust me, gravity is painful.

"Where's our plates and silverware?" I asked Seph who was already sitting at our table. Usually the table was already set before a meal. But today there was nothing for us.

Seph, looking sour, held up a piece of paper as his only answer. Looking at it with curiosity and dread, I took it out of his hand. I unfolded the paper and read it a few times to let it sink in. A frown was forming on my face the whole time.

Crap.

-Five Minutes Later-

"This is unacceptable behavior," Vlad said venomously from behind his office desk. I couldn't believe that we had to miss supper to listen to the lunatic reprimand us. I was starving, and I had to sit there with my arch enemy telling me how much of a disappointment I was to his camp.

Seph and I sat on wooden chairs that had been placed in the office. The small room had a large window over looking a picturesque landscape of the forest. Vlad's desk took up most of the space. It was large, oak, and bulky. The standard equipment was placed on it: a computer screen, a pencil holder, and a mess of various important papers. On one side of the room was a wall of book shelves filled with old, hardback valuables that I'm sure would cost a lot on eBay.

"Whose idea was it to pour twenty bags of ectoplasm residue from my personal cabin all over my lounge?" Vlad asked with his eyes narrowed on both of us. It was like he was trying to bore a hole into our foreheads. I almost smiled to spur him on with his useless attempt to do so.

"We just thought it would be fun," Seph said smoothly, "It was both our faults. Sorry Mr. Masters. We thought you could take a joke."

"Those couches out there cost hundreds each," Vlad almost shouted. Oh, it was fun to see him so peeved like this. If I wasn't so hungry I would have enjoyed it more. "Destroying them and making me pay for it is not a joke, young man!"

Seph shrugged. Vlad looked like he was going to explode. Seph just stared back at Vlad's deadly gaze with a calm and collected manner about him. Jeez, this guy was good!

Vlad then adverted his stare to me and asked coolly, "Daniel, what do you have to say about this?"

"It seemed like a good idea at first," I said, all innocent like. It took everything in me and Seph not to burst out laughing at Vlad's look of pure anger and astonishment.

The look lasted only a moment, though. Soon the man was back to his old, impassive self again. He folded his arms across his chest with a sigh. "You two are to be punished for your foolish actions," he said sternly. "You are to mop the floor of the Mess Hall every night after dinner for the rest of the week. If I catch you two doing anything else that is stupid, harsher punishments will ensue. Understand?"

"Yes, sir," Seph said with a nod.

"Yes, sir," I said after some hesitation. I hated to call the guy sir, but I had to.

"Good," Vlad said. "Mr. Worthington, you may leave. Daniel and I need to talk privately."

Seph shot me a worried and confused glance before getting to his feet. I wondered what he was thinking. "Good luck, mate," he said while closing the door to the office behind him. I was then alone with Vlad. Not good.

I dared to lift my eyes up to meet his. For a second he just stared at me, quiet intensity in his hard gaze that was pinned on my weary eyes. He was like a snake ready to strike…and I was the hopeless mouse.

But the strike never came. The man got up out of his big leather chair and strolled to the other side of his desk so that he was only a foot or two away from where I sat. I watched him the whole time, ready to bolt if I needed to.

"No need to 'go ghost' as you say," Vlad finally said. He indicated a small camera in the corner of the room with a nod of his head. "With it rolling, we must both behave, don't we?"

"What do you want, Vlad?" I asked, getting right to the point. I hated playing cat and mouse…because the mouse never wins. And I'm always the mouse.

"What did that prank accomplish?" Vlad asked. "Why did you feel the need to break into my home and pour goo all over my costly belongings?" He bent down so that we were nose to nose while continuing. "Please, pray tell me how you thought you would get away with it with just a few simple chores?"

"The camera is rolling," I told him in a growl. "If you dare to touch me I'll report you."

Vlad placed his hands on the back of my chair on both sides of my head, making sure I had no where to go if I did think of fleeing. As brave as I wanted to be, I was still scared somewhat of this man. Heart slamming hard against my chest, I scooted deeper into my seat to try and put more room between me and him. But Vlad only moved in closer with full intent to intimidate me.

"I don't have to use you as my punching bag to get a message across to you, boy," Vlad said smugly. "You might be able to fly around and play superhero all you want in this pathetic camp, but I'll warn you now. If you so dare to pull a stunt like that again like you did this afternoon, I won't be so forgiving. You don't want to mess with me this time, Daniel. Do anything else that idiotic and you might have to go home in a body bag."

"You're bluffing," I said. If he wanted me dead, he would have done it already.

"You want to take that chance?" Vlad asked. He smiled when seeing my uncertain look. "I didn't think so. Now get this straight, you get in my way, I'll make sure you'll regret it, and it might not be with your life. Anyone can get lost in the woods. Maybe your new Joseph friend was taking a hike and couldn't find his way home. Or maybe your sister. Or the little Gothic girl, Sam, which I heard is showing up tomorrow. They're all dispensable."

"You stay away from them!" I seethed into his face. It was one thing threatening me, but I drew the line when my friends and family were in danger. He had taken things too far with this.

"You stay in your place and I won't have to," Vlad spat back. "Got it?"

"You can't expect me to do nothing," I said. "You _know_ I can't sit around waiting for doom. I know you're up to something, and I'm going to find out what it is."

"Got it?"

"You're crazy!"

"Do you understand?" Vlad shouted roughly into my face, making me wince.

"I got it," I whispered in response.

A/N: Vladdy is upset it seems. Maybe it's because Danny always seemed to foil his plans for world domination and such. I don't know how the man has any pride. His arch enemy is a 14-year-old boy. Oh well. I'll see you guys next week with another update. It gets kinda spooky the next chapter. I can't wait for next week!


	4. Chapter 4 A Kitchen Killing

A/N: Okay, here's the chapter where it gets a little spooky. It's my first horror fic, so I'm sorry if it doesn't turn out as creepy as I hoped it to be. And thank you for the reviewers who told me about my Guys in White error. I corrected it now. Thanks. Now let's get on with the chapter. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom or CHERUB characters. The plot and anything else is mine.

Chapter 4 A Kitchen Killing

I stared into darkness, my mind wondering into oblivion or wherever your thoughts take you when you worry and fret over your life and the lives of others. It was two in the morning and I wasn't near to calming myself down from Vlad's words. They plagued my restless mind, keeping me up late into the night.

So there I was, laying there in my bed in our pitch-black cabin, contemplating my options and how to go at them. And I was getting nowhere.

"Danny?" Seph asked suddenly from out of the darkness.

"Yeah?" I answered quietly. I didn't know he was awake too. Maybe he was an insomniac and never slept.

"You awake?" he asked. I could almost picture his smirk as he said this.

"No, I talk in my sleep all the time," I said sarcastically.

"Good," he said, "Because maybe then you'll want to go jump into the pool with me."

I gave a snort of laughter at the wild idea. I was about to tell him to shut up and go back to sleep, but then I thought about it more. I couldn't sleep. He couldn't sleep. Why not?

"Do they heat the pool?" I asked, grinning.

"There's only one way to find out," Seph answered with a laugh. He couldn't believe I was going to do this with him. Heck, I couldn't believe I was agreeing to it.

"An hour swim might do me some good," I said, sitting up. "But we got to be quiet. The last thing we need is Vlad to catch us and get more chores."

"Dude, and I thought you were a nerdy goody good type of guy," Seph said as he jumped out of bed. "But you're quickly proving me wrong."

"I'll take that as a compliment," I muttered while rolling my eyes. I threw back my stuffy and hot sleeping bag and got out of bed. We stumbled in the dark for a few minutes, hissing insults whenever we ran into each other as we searched for our swimming trunks. Miraculously, we found them and some towels. After changing, we quietly opened our cabin's door and snuck outside.

The first thing that hit me was the coldness. It was a big difference from the blazing heat we experienced every afternoon. It didn't help that Seph and I was barefoot and had only our swimming trunks on. The rocks of the gravel felt like icicles under my feet.

The camp at night was even creepier than it was empty in the daytime. Lamp posts blasted flood lights onto the gravel pathways, so it was easy to see where we were going. But if we strayed from our path, it was like walking into a black hole. I'd never seen any place so dark.

Besides the usual scary darkness, the atmosphere was creepy too. Distant frogs were loud as they croaked and sung for dominance over all the others. The whole place felt alive with their noises. And there was something else. I couldn't place it, but there was something out there watching us closely. It put all my nerves on edge. I wanted to go back to my cabin, but I didn't want to look lame in front of Seph.

By the time we got to the pool's gate, I felt normal again. I was used to the incessant frog and nighttime animal sounds. I still had the feeling we were being watched, but my confidence was rising.

We jumped the fence because the gate was locked with a padlock and Seph said he didn't have a clue as to how to open it. Two big flood lamps lit up the chlorine filled waters from above while some heating lamps made it sparkle from below. Everything looked calm and peaceful.

Seph destroyed the tranquil illusion by throwing his towel to the side and jumping right in with a giant splash. I laughed while letting my towel drop to the ground and did a cannon ball right after him. I came back to the surface only to get splashed by Seph. After that, the battle was on. We spent the next few minutes splashing and dunking each other till we were so worn out that we had to call a truce.

We floated on our backs then to cool ourselves off. Now that I had settled down, my mind was going back to Vlad's threats. I had to stop him somehow, but I didn't want to give him any reason to hurt any of my friends or Jazz. I needed to make a choice soon. I needed to know how much danger everyone at camp was in to make that decision, but I couldn't do that without bumping heads with Vlad again.

"I'm busting to pee," I told Seph while getting out of the pool.

"Well, don't go in here!" he said sharply.

"That's why I'm getting out, genius," I snapped back with a grin. "I need to know where the bathroom is."

"That way, mate," he said, pointing in the direction with an index finger.

"Thanks, dude," I said before rushing off. I had to jump the fence again, but I really didn't care. I followed the flood lights to the two little shacks that served as the girls and boys restrooms and held a few stalls inside. I was walking up the cold cement steps to them on the hill when I heard a piercing scream from behind.

Gasping, I spun around to see what was going on. One of the young camp consolers, one of the girls, came rushing up from behind me. I remembered her from my first day of introductions. She was one of the girls of cabin five. I remembered her name, Amanda, because she was drop dead gorgeous. She was tall and athletic with long raven-black hair and bright green emerald eyes that were full of life and joy. She could beat Paulina any day.

But why did she look so scared? The question sent a chill down my spine.

Sweat laden, the girl bounded up the stairs to my side. She wore a skimpy dark blue sleeveless shirt with matching PJ pants with little fluffy sheep on them. On any normal occasion I would have stared at her in dream world instead of alarm. She took in a few deep, ragged breaths before saying in a rush, "Something's chasing me! We have to hide!"

"What?" I asked, confused. "What is chasing you?"

"I don't know," she whispered, terror running deep in her voice.

I looked behind her into the darkness to see what was there. I caught a glimpse of red before a black mass jumped out at us. I didn't get a good look at the thing, but somehow I knew its evil intent and the danger we were in.

Amanda screamed. I acted. Grabbing her wrist, I quickly yanked her up the stairs to the bathroom shacks. Without glancing back at the thing now charging up the stairs and growling menacingly, I flung the boy's door open, shoved Amanda in, and closed it behind me. A second later, the thing slammed hard into the door, throwing me to the floor by its sheer force.

"No!" I shouted when seeing the door being forced open by whatever was outside. Struggling to my feet, I flung myself back at the door and threw my shoulder against it. The thing on the other side pushed against the door a few more times, but I was able to keep it closed. Then it was silent.

"You okay?" I asked Amanda the standard question. She was cowering by the sinks, shaking and crying with fear. But she was strong enough to nod at me. Through her tears she saw something, though. Going pale, she pointed at my feet and screamed again.

I looked down and saw a swirling black fog trickling out from under the door. Cold terror prevented me from moving. I stood there like an idiot as the ominous mist formed into a solid object right before my eyes. Heart slamming against my chest, I had succumbed to fear and was paralyzed.

The thing walked on all fours like an animal, but it was no cute and fuzzy house cat. It was the size of maybe a full grown Great Dane and pure black. Its body looked malnourished, with gangling limbs and ribs clearly shown. It had no tail, ears, or nose. It had a long head with a pointed chin, huge jaws dripping with salvia, and blood red eyes that summed me up like I was his meal.

The beast growled in the pleasure of my presence and slinked closer to my frozen body. It stuck its face into mine and I could smell its fowl breath. It smelled like something had crawled up in its mouth and died there. I had to turn my head away to keep myself from throwing up.

As I turned my head, I felt something hot and sticky run across my exposed neck. A sick feeling came to my stomach as I realized the thing was licking my neck as if tasting me for my flavor. Its thick saliva felt like acid as it dripped down my bare shoulder. I had to squeeze my eyes shut, trying to get the picture of this monster out of my head. I know I should have gone ghost by now, but something was holding me back.

"Stay away from him!" Amanda's voice shouted suddenly. I opened my eyes to see her wielding a mop. She threw the wooden staff back then came down hard on the beast's head inches away from me. It crumbled under the blow. It was her small flash of bravery that saved my life that night.

"Thank you, thank you!" I whispered to her in a frantic panic. "Let's get out here!" I took her hand and plowed through the door of the bathroom and back out into the cold night. We both screamed when seeing Seph standing there.

"What's going on?" he asked slowly, trying to connect the picture of me and Amanda together in his mind. He took in our scared expressions and threw out the notion that we were making out or something along those lines.

"We got to move!" I told him quickly. I pushed the boy out of the way and ran with Amanda down the stairs.

"Holy-," I heard Seph shout a second later. He only had to get one look at that monster after us and was soon running by our sides. "Faster, mates, faster!" he yelled at us. We didn't need his motivation to throw our runs into sprints.

"Shit, Fenton, what is that thing?" Seph screamed at me as we flew across the gravel. We were still wet from our swim in the pool, and Amanda was in her night clothes, so the rocks under us were like needles of ice under our bare feet. But the pain didn't register in any of our heads at the time.

"I have no clue!" I shouted back, "But it wants us for dinner!"

"Follow me, then!" he said as he pulled ahead. We could hear the beast running after us, growling in anticipation. Seph led us around a few cabins, slowing down for nothing. We put on a burst of speed as we came up to the Mess Hall. He brought us around to the other side where the kitchen door was. I didn't know if he knew it or not, but the door was unlocked and he ushered Amanda and I in.

"Where are we?" I whispered. We had arrived into darkness. The only light we had to go by was the red glare from the EXIT sign above our heads incase there was a fire.

Seph didn't turn on the lights but grabbed a flashlight by the door. "The kitchen," he answered. Fearless, he plunged into the darkness, leading us into its depths without turning on the comforting light of the flashlight.

Once my eyes got used to the poor lighting, I could actually make out the rows of counters. There were three of them, all stainless steal and gleaming a faint red from the light of the EXIT sign. Cooking utensils were collected in various places. But it was clean and practically empty, the pots and pans kept in cabinets.

Seph led us past the first row, but stopped at the second. He walked down the second aisle and crouched down and ordered us to do the same. It was at this time when I saw his plan. We were going to hide there and try to outsmart the beast that was after us. I sat down next to him and Amanda next to me, making me the middle guy.

"We're going to die," Amanda cried out between sobs of fear. "Oh god, we're going to die!"

"Amanda, listen to me, we're not going to die," Seph told her. She got no comfort and kept crying, the tears mixing with snot, a perfect picture of someone who was scared beyond all reason. I guess because I've dealt with ghosts for most of my life, I was cool under these kinds of pressure. How Seph was keeping it all together baffled me. Actually, he was calmer than I was.

Before Seph or I had the chance to try and calm her down some more, the door to the kitchen flung open with a loud boom, producing a sharp scream from Amanda. Seph and I cringed at the piercing sound of her voice. She was going to get us all killed if she kept screaming like that!

The door was then closed by the beast. The thing was smart enough to open and close doors by himself! Then would he be able to see through our hiding trick? Oh, I really hoped not! Seph's plan was all we had.

Amanda tried her hardest to repress her tears as we listened closely to the slow footfalls of the predator. I could feel her shake beside me. Her actions were making me freak too. Through the dim light, I could see my hand shake uncontrollably as I placed it onto her shoulder for reassurance. She needed to calm down!

Why I hadn't turned ghost yet was nagging at me from the back of my mind. I could easily flash into my alter-ego and kick that beast's butt, but something like an intuition or instinct told me not to. I'd never had that feeling before. It was like it was telling me that things would get worse if I turned ghost, so that was the only reason why my eyes weren't green and my hair white yet.

I could faintly hear the beast's steps as he took his time searching for us. All it did was make Seph impatient, me jumpy and nervous, and Amanda want to bolt. I could feel it in my touch with her shoulder. She was getting tenser by the second. At any second she was going to jump up and run. And every second my grip on her tightened.

Then things plummeted south.

We could hear the creature on our left side and were prepared to crawl the opposite way to avoid it, but Amanda was frightened and stupid and just couldn't keep it all in. She gave a small scream while yanking herself out of my grip and getting to her feet. One second she was there running, the next she was gone with a painful, soul wrenching cry as the beast leapt into the air and landed on her.

Seph and I were stunned into silence as we sat there in total shock. We heard the thump of Amanda's body as she landed behind the third counter, the force of the creature's tackle that strong. We heard a plead from the girl that was drowned out in sobs…then the ripping of flesh.

"Amanda!" I screamed her name in desperation. I scrambled to my feet and stumbled down the aisle. My heart felt like it had stopped. Blood roared through my ears. I rounded the counter and slipped on something. A yelp of surprise escaped me as I landed on my bare hands and knees in the gooey, unknown substance. It was like water but thicker and had a unique smell that attacked my senses, making me want to vomit.

A harsh ray of light blasted from behind me, making a shadow of myself huge before my widened eyes. Seph was standing behind me with his flashlight on, but I didn't even realize that at the time. My eyes were on the pool of liquid I had fallen in.

It was blood.

The light rose, leaving me in the dark. I followed the blaze of the flashlight to where Seph was pointing and felt my whole being sink in despair and horror. There Amanda was with the beast hovering over her. She was soaked with her own blood, obviously dead. But it was the gaping hole in her stomach that made me freeze in repulsion. The beast had eaten a hole into her abdomen and was now chewing on the rest of her soft tissue, making a satisfied sound that made my own stomach sick and churn in disgust. It watched Seph and me with its red eyes, proud of its devilish accomplishment.

"Danny, we need to get out of here," Seph whispered.

"We need to get help," I whispered back.

Seph took a tentative step forward, keeping the flashlight pinned on the monster that was still chewing and smiling at us. Seph grabbed my arm and pulled me to my feet. My legs and hands were covered in Amanda's blood, but this didn't register in my head. It was all I could do not to crumble into a ball and cry. I had to force myself to back away and then run with Seph to the other side of the kitchen that lead into the dining hall.

The second Seph's light left the beast, we heard it move. Seph and I sprinted to the double doors and shoved them open. Panic ridden, we quickly brought them back in and slammed them shut. I had enough sense in me to flip the dead lock in place. We felt the creature pound on the other side, growling and hissing at us.

Suddenly the lights to the room turned on. Seph and I screamed in surprise as we looked to the other side of the room. A group of three older counselors and Vlad were marching into the Mess Hall looking both confused and angry to see us two boys there.

"What the hell is going on here?" one of the men counselors shouted at us.

"We heard screaming," the only woman one said with concern. "Is everything alright?"

The pounding had stopped from the other side. The addition of people had made the creature leave. We were safe now. But all I could see was my memory of Amanda's torn apart and bloody body. I tried, really I did, but I couldn't help it now. I turned, placed my hands on my knees, and puked all over the linoleum floor.

"Oh my gosh!" the woman yelped. "Someone help the poor boy!"

Seph placed a hand on my back, giving me an understanding look. "I'd be doing the same, kid, but I have nothing in my stomach at this point," he told me with a grim frown.

Adults rushed around me, fussing over my display of what was left of my dinner. They asked multiple questions that amazingly Seph and I were able to answer. After some time, they got the fact that Amanda was dead and they all rushed into the kitchen to inspect the damage.

Seph and I sat down at one of the tables in a complete daze. I was shaking again, and I saw that Seph was doing the same. He might not have puked his guts out like me, but he was just as shaken up as I was. Now that I looked closely, I could see tears welling up in his eyes. We had just seen someone get killed! In all my years of ghost hunting, I had never seen anything so horrific.

"Daniel, Joseph," Vlad said as he walked up to us. He hadn't joined the others in the kitchen. "How do you feel?"

I looked up at him and it all came into place. This was what Vlad had warned me about. That thing that killed Amanda was what he was hiding. We made eye contact, and Vlad seemed to see my understanding and frowned. All I could do was stare up at him, mouth agape. If I wanted to save this camp, I was going to have to confront that beast again. And to tell you the truth, that was the most frightening thing I had to think about.

"No way in bloody hell!" Seph murmured from beside me. I averted my eyes from Vlad to look at my friend. What was his problem? He was looking behind Vlad in shock and disbelief. I swung my head around to see what he saw.

"No," I whispered. "That's not possible."

There she was, smiling and apologizing to the adults as they all walked out of the kitchen. Amanda waved over to Seph and me. We didn't respond. There was no blood, no guts, and no fear. She was fine.

But…how?

There was only one way to prove this was real. Seph pushed himself out of his seat, already on my terms of thinking. I wasn't too far behind him as we raced past Amanda's apparition and adults. We bolted through the kitchen doors and skidded to a stop where we had seen the girl's dead and lifeless body just minutes before.

"What the hell?" Seph swore.

"I swear I saw her there, dead," I said. I turned to him and shouted, "Tell me you saw her too!"

"Yeah, I saw her, with her stomach ripped out," Seph said, adding the gruesome detail to prove it to me. "But that couldn't have been an illusion. It was real."

"Then tell me how she's alive now and there is no trace of her death," I said. "Dude, there isn't even a hint of her blood. Look, the blood that was on my hands, gone." I held up a clean hand to show him.

"Jeez," he said quietly. "This is too creepy."

"No kidding," I muttered. "Its making my head spin just thinking of it."

"So it wasn't a ghost?" Seph asked. "I thought it was a ghost…just scarier than what I thought one was."

The thought stopped me in my tracks. "No," I said slowly, "That wasn't a ghost. It would have been obvious to me if that was one. Plus, ghosts don't…eat people." We both shivered as our minds once again replayed that scene from a few minutes ago.

"Then what was it?" he asked, "Some animal beast thing like Bigfoot? I'm having a hard time figuring out what it was exactly. Everything just isn't making sense."

"It was like a ghost," I said, still on the last subject, "Just more…powerful."

A/N: Tell me what you guys think. I want to make this fic creepy with that creature, and I have no clue if I'm getting even a little bit right or not. Feedback on that area would be great. Also, my updates will be going down from once a week to once every two weeks now. Sorry, but school bogs me down so much that its hard popping out two chapters every week because you got two fan fics going at once. So in two weeks you'll see another update for this fic. See you awesome readers then!


	5. Chapter 5 Distorted Soul

A/N: I'm giddy with happiness over how you guys responded. I guess I got the creepy part of this fic down. And I'm sorry about not responding to reviews. But reading them is fun. Some of you guys have the wildest ideas on what happened. The imaginations you readers have. Anyways, let's get on to the chapter. It's long, but interesting. Enjoy and review! Thanks!

Disclaimer: Danny Phantom and CHERUB characters are not mine.

Chapter 5 Distorted Soul

_BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!_

Grumbling and complaining into the comforting folds of my pillow, I tried to ward off the annoying and loud buzz of my alarm clock with incoherent shouts. Maybe my muffled yells at it would insult the machine enough to make it shut up and give me a few more minutes of well needed and wanted sleep.

I hadn't slept since I had arrived at Happy Hills. My exhaustion from last night with Amanda and that monster had somehow given me enough overwhelming thoughts to put me into a dreamless sleep.

But my alarm clock was ruining everything.

Face still in my pillow, I reached out to hit the snooze button. Before my fingers connected with the clock, the incessant beeping stopped abruptly. For a moment I felt peace, then realization crept its way into my sleep heavy and clogged brain. Who turned the clock off?

I lifted myself up with my elbows and looked up at the person now standing darkly over my bed.

"Whoa!"

Yeah, it was the wakeup moment of the century for me. From his spot next to my bed, Vlad's look of cold and calculated menace was like splashing a cup of Artic cold water in my face that morning. I was quick to back away from him, pressing my back against the wooden panels of the wall behind me. I was ready to spring into ghost mode at a moment notice.

"What are you doing here?" I asked Vlad, breathless with my flash of panic. "Where's Seph?"

"Joseph just left to take a shower," Vlad responded with a chillingly emotionless voice. "We have the morning all to ourselves. Let's talk."

I let myself relax just a bit. Talking was much better than fighting. Sighing, I rubbed by face with a weary hand, trying to swipe off the sleepiness. Vlad watched me without blinking. He wasn't in a good mood from what I could see. Usually when he skips out on our petty banter meant he didn't have the time and patience for games. And when Vlad didn't want to play his little mind games meant things were pretty serious between us.

I decided to state some facts first off.

"You're crazy, you know that," I said to him, catching his eyes with my own. "This whole camp is in danger, and you could care less about that creature you're letting run free."

"So you did see it?" Vlad asked. "Did your little friend see it too?"

"Seph and I saw it kill Amanda, if that's what you mean, you heartless psychopath!" I seethed through clenched teeth. The fresh reminder of the poor girl's death fired a passion in my chest. Maybe fighting was better than talking.

"There is no need to become too emotional, Daniel," Vlad stated in something of a growl of distaste.

"It killed and ate the girl, and you tell me not to get emotional!" I spat back at him in almost disbelief. "One camper is already dead! How many freaking more do you need to open your eyes? These kids are in danger!"

"Keep your voice down, _boy_!" Vlad hissed venomously. "No amount of shouting is going to change anything. Besides, you saw her alive and well. She isn't exactly 'dead' as you claim her to be."

"I can't believe you!" I yelled despite his warning. "Don't give me that bull crap! You know-."

I was strictly cut off when Vlad lunged forward and over my bed. He grabbed a handful of my nightshirt while using his thrusting momentum of that arm to shove me into the wall and pin me there. I winced as my head slammed roughly with the hard wood, but I kept up my dark glare as we were now face to face.

"I am tired of your ignorance," Vlad whispered harshly into my face. "The rules from last night still apply. If I find any disturbance coming from you, you'll pay for your foolish deeds. I don't care what you saw last night, but know full well that if you speak one word of it to anyone that you'll regret it. Keep your mouth shut and your nose out of my business and you and your friends might survive the month."

"No one's going to survive the month with that monster loose," I stated bluntly.

"That's not your concern," Vlad said with another hard shove.

I said nothing. Whatever I said now would only make us both angry. I wasn't in the mood for another argument with this guy. It was better to just let him go, think about the situation, and then sneak behind his back and foil his plans without much confrontation.

"Good," Vlad said while giving me a good look up and down, "I'm glad we could see eye to eye." I gave him a defiant look of arched eyebrows that he ignored while letting me go and standing back up straight. He dusted himself off as if literally flinging the old topic away. "Now we can get on to other, more important business."

"Because the killing off of all your campers isn't all that important," I muttered sarcastically under my breath. Vlad shot me a questioning glare that I ignored with a smoothly placed yawn.

The game between us was fully in session now.

"Let's discuss your…disturbingly messy room mate," Vlad said while observing the wreck of clothes and randomly scattered litter and objects around the room. Seph and I were both pretty disorganized, but his side looked like a bomb went off compared to mine.

"What about him?" I asked with new interest. Where was Vlad going with this?

Vlad walked with his hands firmly clasped behind his back as he went over to Seph's side of the room. He rummaged through strewn cloths and candy wrappers in the search for something unknown to me. I watched him like a hawk. When the man became unpredictable was the time to be on guard. I learned that lesson back when I was handcuffed to that toilet the other day. It is amazing how 24 hours before can seem like another whole life.

"How long have you known Joseph?" Vlad asked me with a surprisingly calm voice. He was done threatening me. Now he was trying to pry me open. He wanted information out of me, but his mission wasn't dire to get it. It was like he was playing a game with me with complicated rules that I didn't fully understand.

I decided to try my hand at this dangerous game of chess.

"For a few days," I answered slowly. I dared to look away from him for a moment as if searching for some clothes to change into for the day. My answer I knew arouse some suspicion from the man. I could feel his gaze on me as I grabbed a pair of jeans from the floor beside my bed.

"And who really came up with the idea to raid my cabin?" Vlad asked nonchalantly. I dared a quick look up to see him hastily picking up Seph's mattress to look under it. When finding nothing under there, he looked back at me, who had swiftly returned to choosing a shirt out of the pile of ones before me.

It was decision time. To lie, or not to lie. Without skipping a beat, I bluffed, "It was both of ours." I didn't want to rat out my friend.

"But why would the boy have the need to break into my cabin?" Vlad asked me.

"He wanted his laptop back," I said with a shrug. I didn't have the time to come up with some fabricated answer.

"Yes, the laptop," Vlad said in something of a grumble. "I was wondering where that had gone to."

At the same time we stole glances at each other and caught the other in the act. He threw off his capture with a sigh as he moved on to Seph's suitcase. I simply pressed my lips together and looked off to the side in thought. Was Vlad looking for Seph's laptop? If so, then why? Should I have been concerned about Vlad's interest in Seph, or with Seph himself? Answers weren't going to be easy to get a hold of.

"Where are you getting at, Vlad?" I asked the man who was now shifting around things in Seph's suitcase.

"I'd just advise you to beware of the boy," Vlad answered while closing the traveling case with a frown of confusion. "He's a bad influence." His eyes stopped their probing when he spotted Seph's backpack that was hidden under a heap of clothing. He bent down to snatch it up when the door to the room suddenly opened.

"Who's a bad influence?" Seph asked from the doorway. I noticed that his sharp eyes had quickly taken in the situation. He was tense, ready to react to anything that came his way.

"Vlad, here, was saying how much he thought you were a bad influence on me," I piped up, all too ready to give my enemy some spite. The dark look Vlad gave me after this was all I wanted. I couldn't help but return it with a smile.

Seph looked back and forth between us, his brain working furiously in such little time he had. Finally he took the cool approach to stall for time. He put his towel over his head, rubbed it into his wet hair, and strolled into the room. "If this is about last night, I'm sorry, Masters," he told Vlad, his voice muffled from the fabric over his face.

"It was just a small warning," Vlad said while passing him. "Meant for both of you. I want no more of these silly antics." As if in afterthought he said before leaving, "You're punishment is to be lifeguards an hour everyday for the rest of the month. See if that keeps down your urges of midnight swims." He slammed the door to the cabin shut behind him.

Seph looked over to the door then back at me before saying, "He's creeping me out."

"Get used to it," I muttered back.

-Few Hours Later-

I had twenty minutes to kill before the kids arrived. A perpetual knot had been tied in my stomach all morning because of this dreaded thought. I not only dislike kids somewhat, but there was their safety I worried about. That monster was out there somewhere hidden in the depths of the woods. Any one of those annoying brats could become prey to that thing. I might not like kids very much, but I wasn't heartless like Vlad. I cared for their lives.

I was on my way to my cabin to maybe get some conversation out of Seph when somebody suddenly grabbed my arm and stopped me. I started out of reflex, but saw that it was only my sister a second later, and tensed even more. She had that look in her eyes. She was pissed…and I was the cause.

"What the heck is going on, Danny?" she asked me as she dug her slim fingers into my arm and dragged me off my original course. I let her take control over where we stepped, but I wasn't going to let her win this discussion.

"When were you going to tell me Vlad owned this camp?" I asked back with my own question. It was a pretty good one, I might add.

I could see her eyes narrow in her slight display of anger and surprise before answering, "I didn't know about him, okay! This place was to get you away from ghost fighting and have a decent vacation. But you plan to mess it up! What happened last night?"

The only way to do this was to avoid the question and latch onto something else she said. "I didn't plan to mess it up," I pleaded my case. "I was planning to have a wonderful vacation too until Vlad showed up. Living in the same camp as my mortal enemy isn't what I call fun, Jazz, so don't blame all the crap that happened on me!"

"You're ignoring my question," Jazz pointed out in something of a hiss. I suppressed the urge to wince. I hated it when she was this way and it was all directed towards me. She asked again, "What happened last night?"

"You won't believe me," I said, trying to jerk my way out of her hold on my arm as she lugged me toward the unknown.

"Try me," she retorted.

"Seph and I went for a swim. I went to the bathroom and heard a scream," I was saying in a rush. Each sentence was building momentum. "Amanda said something was chasing her. This monster black thing attacked us, but we got away. We met back up with Seph and we all ran to the kitchen to hide. But then Amanda got caught by the thing and it killed her and ate out her stomach! She died last night!"

Jazz softened her grip on my arm while staring at me with concern and confusion. I could see that she was having a hard time being convinced. It was only the desperate tone of my voice and the watering of my eyes that she was still having a conversation with me. Otherwise she would have proclaimed me crazy and would have walked away in a huff.

"Danny, Amanda is fine," Jazz told me. "I talked to her this morning. She told me she had a fun time with you and Seph last night. That was how I knew something happened last night."

"No! She was killed by that thing!" I told her in a harsh whisper. For some reason I wanted someone else to believe me. I was desperate to not be alone in this ordeal. "Seph and I were there. I…I had her blood all over my hands. You gotta believe me, Jazz. You think I'd make this up?"

She gave me a suspicious look. She hadn't believed a word I had said. For some reason this hurt me. My own sister didn't believe me. This was hard to take.

"You seem distressed," she said. It was the understatement of the year. She should have worn a Captain Obvious nametag for the kids instead of the perfectly labeled one placed on her chest.

My only response was a grunt of unhappiness and the roll of my eyes.

"That is why I've brought you to Amanda's cabin," Jazz said with a cool smile. "We can then talk it all out and settle this thing once and for all."

For a moment I just stared at her in complete astonishment. Words couldn't be expressed. Before she had even confronted me she hadn't once pondered the fact that I could be right. In her own mind she had already decided I had done wrong and she was going to fix it all by herself. Of course I knew she did this frequently. I being at Happy Hills was a result of this. But it was only then that I saw the cruelty it could bring.

"Don't you believe me, Jazz?" I asked her quietly, my fire suddenly put out by her actions.

She avoided my eyes and said matter-of-factly, "You're just being paranoid and silly, Danny. Now let's talk to Amanda and clear this mess up. This will all be fixed by the time the kids arrive."

At this time I gave up on trying to get her to believe me. Yes, I loved her and I knew she was smart and meant well for me, but she didn't know her methods of helping hurt. I let her pull me to the door of Amanda's cabin. My head spun with uncertainty because of my sister's answers to my story. I didn't even realize that anything was going on till Amanda's face was staring into mine when we were seated on two bunk beds facing each other in the comforts of her cabin.

"Can you explain to me what happened between you two last night?" Jazz was asking the girl before us.

She was just as stunning as before. Her figure was hard not to take in for a brief moment. My traveling eyes transfixed to her eyes when they got there. The vibrant emeralds that had greeted me with fear from last night had been replaced with dull, lifeless pale colored ones. Her emotions were still joyful as she told Jazz that she, Seph, and I had gone swimming last night then pretended to see a ghost to try and spook the camp, but the leaders had caught them. I hardly paid attention to the story as my mind reverted back to the dark memory of her death.

This girl in front of me wasn't Amanda. I didn't know why I thought that, but I just knew it. It was like someone or something else was speaking out of a dead corpse. I could see it in her stiff and forceful movements as she conversed with Jazz. Her skin was deathly pale, her natural and beautiful tan had vanished overnight.

"Are you alright, Danny?" Amanda suddenly asked me. The question snapped me out of my questions and thoughts. I pulled my hand back when she placed her ice cold one on it. A look of concern was on her pretty features. I wanted so bad to believe that the emotion was truly hers.

"I…I'm fine, really," I said, trying to sound honest. "I better go. Seph and I said we would meet up with each other before the kids got here." She nodded in response.

I quickly got to my feet to leave with Jazz. We said our goodbyes to Amanda and exited the cabin. Jazz was beaming with the notion that everything was okay and fixed by her own flawless hands. I ignored her smiling while busying myself with an idea. It was only when she was about to walk away and leave me alone that she said one last thing that pulled me out of my pondering.

"I'd stay away from that Seph kid, Danny," she told me. She was already walking down the gravel pathway, so she didn't see me look up with surprise and interest. Her long orange ponytail swished with her bouncy and energetic steps as she continued, "He's got you into enough trouble already."

"Stay out of my life, Jazz," I shot back with annoyance. She didn't know Seph. She didn't know what he had suffered through with me. I saw then that Seph was really my only alley in the puzzling death and resurrection of Amanda. It wasn't a very comforting thought.

I waited till the troublesome sister was out of sight to put my brash and spur of the moment plan into action. I jumped into the shadows of Amanda's cabin and let the bright rings flow around my body and transform. This whole time at Happy Hills I hadn't once turned ghost. It was a nice little break from the oppressing real world. It felt good to be in control again, to feel like I had some power.

Smiling slightly to myself, I turned myself invisible and intangible. With a little push of my body, I broke through the holds of reality and phased through the wall of Amanda's cabin. The inside looked exactly like it did a second ago. Two suitcases were put away under perfectly made beds. The floor looked spotlessly clean. Even a small scent of a perfume hung on the hot and stuffy air.

I almost gave a gasp when seeing Amanda. Her lifeless body was slumped over of her bed, staring out into nothing as if passed out or dead. I pushed back the memories while floating closer to her. Her stomach wasn't moving. The diaphragm in her wasn't working like it should. To me, who was still invisible, she was dead.

Chewing my lip with indecision, I contemplated the situation. If she was still dead, then how come she was still moving and talking when around others? Something must have been controlling her. But what? I had only seen a ghost do that. And the only way to see what was going on was to get into that brain of hers.

I was going in.

I summed up enough nerve to will myself to dive down into her head. It was always a strange and uninviting sensation when I was in the process of shutting off another person's essence or soul and substituting my own. I hated to do it at times. I believe others should be in control of their bodies. But desperate times call for desperate measures.

Like normal, I was dropped off into the person's soul room. Well, I can't explain it very well. Before I ever overshadow somebody I have to pass through there. It's like a place in someone's mind where they have the most control. It is kind of like someone's subconscious. Like I said, it's hard to explain. I just call it the soul room. I don't think anyone has come up with a name for it yet.

I was confused when I was met with only darkness. Usually a soul room was a place where the person expressed his or her individuality. For example, Dash Baxter's is the Raven's football field. A bookworm's would be a library. I think the room is just where the person feels most comfortable. My dad's was the basement lab at our house.

Usually I just pass through the soul room. If the person isn't aware of me overshadowing them or have little mind power, their essence or whatever never confronts me as I overpower their soul and shut it out and put my own in its place. Only a few times I've met the unexpected essence there, but they were easy to bypass after a moment and overshadow. Most of the time, the person has no idea that their soul wrestled with mine when I'm finished.

I wasn't met with much of anything when I arrived in Amanda's soul room. It was so dark that I couldn't see my hand when I waved it in front of my face. Shivering in the freezing cold of the black room, I tried to take in my surroundings.

Something in this room was preventing me from overshadowing Amanda. Usually by now I'd be on my way to controlling her body. But today was different. I could literally feel it in the cold air of the room. Something was out there.

"Hello?" I ventured out after a long, agonizing pause.

Nothing was returned. I shivered some more while daring to walk a few steps forward. To keep warm I wrapped my arms around my chest fruitlessly. I didn't want to admit it to myself, but I was becoming a little spooked. Creepy cold and dark rooms weren't exactly what I call inviting or Amanda-like. It didn't take a genius to guess something was wrong with her soul room.

"GET OUT!"

The command came out of nowhere. I gave a gasp of fright as something came from out of the black void and slammed into my chest with brute force. The air was knocked out of me. I could feel myself being pushed out of the room and returning with a rush to the outside world.

A short yelp escaped me as I was suddenly flung from Amanda's motionless body and slammed against the bunk bed across from the one she was on. With a _wham_, I collided harshly with the metal structure and momentarily disoriented. It took a few good seconds for me to get my spinning head back together and register the pain pulsing through my head with a groan.

Opening my eyes, I found myself staring into Amanda's lifeless green ones. I stifled a gasp while forcing myself to become invisible just in time. I watched with wide eyes of horror as the girl's body acted like a limp puppet on strings and sat herself up. She then stood up, ignoring my invisible body, walked to the door, and left the cabin with stiff, erratic movements.

"Where is she going?" I asked myself out loud. I remained invisible while floating upward and toward the ceiling. I phased myself through the solid material without much thought and watched the girl walk down the gravel path toward the front of the camp. Along the way, her body became more in sync and natural.

My eyes darted around the camp that was now below me because of my hovering position above it. Other counselors were heading in the same direction. For a second I was confused and worried. Then it hit me.

"Ah! The kids!" I yelled in panic. Something else important came to mind. Sam was arriving too. The thought was reassuring and bothersome at the same time. I needed to talk to her.

Landing, I flashed back into human form while sprinting toward the front of the camp grounds. In the back of my mind I was dreading the end of this day. When the lights went out and the camp was bathed in darkness, the monster would be out again. What if another innocent kid became a victim?

A/N: The plot thickens. Dun, dun, dun! Well, nothing much else to say. Next update will be in two weeks from now. Thanks for reading!


	6. Chapter 6 I'm Sorry

A/N: I got bruises on my bruises. Rugby practice four days in a row can wear you out. I'm like dead right now, but I'm excited for our first scrimmage this Sunday. Nothing much else to say but thanks for the many reviews! Enjoy the new chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own any Danny Phantom or CHERUB characters.

Chapter 6 I'm Sorry

"Danny!" Seph shouted over to me as soon as I arrived at the front of the camp. I looked away from the dusty yellow buses arriving with surprise. I found my friend after a short search. Pushing my way through the throng of teens, I wished I could have ditched the guy for now and meet up with Sam, but I couldn't leave the dude hanging.

"You brought the sign, right?" I asked him once I was at his side. I was talking about the sign with the letter two on it so the kids assigned to cabin two would know that we both were their counselors.

"One out of two isn't too bad, right?" he asked with a guilty smile. "Thankfully you brought the nametags."

"Crap," I muttered. Obviously, I forgot them in my forced trip to Amanda's cabin and adventure into her messed up soul room. It had seemed so trifle a few seconds ago. But now the moment demanded it to be the most important thing.

"We'll just have to improvise," Seph said wearily. He looked me up and down and asked, "You okay? It looks like you just saw a…ghost." His eyes widened in fear before he said in a whisper, "Don't tell me you saw _it_ again."

I stumbled on the words for a second. Finally I just came out with, "I'll tell you later." Right now wasn't the time to discus the monster from the night before. I'd tell him once I got to talk to Sam. My stomach churned with the thought. What was I going to say once I saw her? My mind went blank.

I guess now is a good time to point out that Sam and I weren't exactly on the same terms. Returning to my mention of me spending too much time ghost fighting before I was forced to go to camp, all those days were spent alone. I was in a depressed funk that lasted more than it should have. I was having bad nightmares where either Sam or Tucker would get killed or seriously hurt because they were involved in a ghost fight. After a while, I refused to let them help me just so I wouldn't have the anxiety of the chance of them getting hurt. That decision didn't go so well.

"Good idea," Seph said with an understanding nod. "The last thing these kids need is some ghost story the second they step off the bus."

A moment later the front of the camp was alive with people. The kids all hopped off the buses with smiles and bright faces. The teen counselors were open and fun as they waved their signs high into the air and called to their kids. Everyone was helping with the luggage and introducing themselves. It looked like one big happy family.

Unfortunately, I was the only one not enjoying it. I looked on with unease. A sick pit was forming in my stomach. These ten-year-old boys and girls were clueless bystanders in this camp. Like stupid sheep, they were blindly walking into the danger Vlad was setting up for them. How was I going to save them?

"Bend down," Seph ordered me suddenly. I raised a questioning eyebrow. "Trust me, mate," he told me with a grin. "I know what I'm doing."

I crouched down. Seph stepped onto my shoulders and told me to stand back up. Smiling, I slowly rose up with him standing on my shoulders. To keep him steady I gripped his ankles as his muddy shoes ground into my shirt and skin. This was bound to get the attention Seph loved so much. The spotlight was like the dude's life source or something.

"Listen up!" Seph shouted above the hubbub. Instantly there were results. The crowd paused in surprise and looked up at Seph. Grinning inanely, the teen yelled, "Any kid belonging to Cabin 2, get your arse over here!" Some people gasped from the kid's use of language in front of the young crowd, but most of the kids and teens hid their smiles or giggled in secret as the adults frowned in disapproval.

Seph jumped off my shoulders with some unexpected grace and bounced back up with his grin still there. We didn't have to wait long for the outcome Seph wished. Eight boys with their bags rushed through the crowd over to us with giant smiles on their faces. Apparently they liked having rebel counselors.

"Okay, kiddies, I'm Seph and this is Danny," Seph introduced us, his voice sharp and commanding. "What are your names?"

"They have nametags, Seph," I told him rather bluntly. The boys smiled when seeing the short glare Seph shot at me. I had stolen his thunder. Opps.

"Knew that," Seph muttered. He then addressed the kids again. "Forget the last question. Let's just get your junk to the cabin and decide what to do after that."

With that plan set, the group started their trek to our Cabin 2. Our eight kids were a bundle of intense energy. The smallest one was talking nonstop about their trip, describing everything with extreme detail. Another little one was jumping up and down with excitement all around us. One kid wanted to prove how strong he was and was forcing the others to give him their duffle bags and suitcases. After about three bags, the kid was swamped and needed help.

Observing all this from the back of the group, I couldn't help but smile when seeing Seph scowl at the other kids in annoyance. He was as fed up with them as I was. And here I thought I was going to be the only counselor hating my job.

"You guys don't look like you want to be here," a kid said suddenly.

I looked down and saw the eighth kid walking steadily beside me. I guess he was normal height and weight with shaggy brown hair and intelligent dark brown eyes. They looked into mine with quiet amusement. He was the only kid who didn't instantly bug the crap out of me. I noticed that he stood out from the others.

"How could you tell?" I asked him with a wry grin. I noted that his nametag said Eric West. Despite my assumptions about these irritating kids, I knew that I could make an exception with this one. There was something refreshing about him. At the time I couldn't pin point it.

"For starters, Seph looks like he's going to blow a gasket if Tom doesn't stop nagging about his trip," Eric said with a giggle. "And second," he continued, "you haven't talked directly to any of us until now."

Who gave this kid the psychology text book? What kid at age ten knows how to decipher those hints everybody makes? Usually when you're that age no doesn't mean no when you want cotton candy. It means ask a billion times more until mom cracks and gets you some. No matter how many different angry and pissed off looks your mom gives you, you don't understand them at all. You just want the sugary goodness.

That's why I was surprised that Eric understood from minute one that we didn't like being counselors. The problem was how I was going to react to him. What should I say to that?

"Good point," I said after a pause for thought. I was never a good liar. Is that a good thing?

"That's okay, though," Eric said casually. "The others haven't seemed to notice. I just find it funny. Um…Tony might need some help with that suitcase."

Rushing forward to catch the falling bag from Tony's loaded arms, our conversation was cut short. I reprimanded the big kid as I lugged his dropped duffle bag into our cabin. The second we got indoors, the kids rushed and screamed for their claim to the bunk beds. I stood there in a daze as the bag in my hands was torn away. Just watching these guys was making me tired.

"We don't have time to get comfy," Seph told the kids after some time. "We have to get to the Mess Hall for a meeting. No, Matt, do not jump from the top bunk! I don't care if you do it all the time at home! Just-just get off without killing yourself."

Whirling to me, Seph looked like he was going to explode. "They won't listen to me," he told me. "How are we going to control this, Danny?"

"You have to know what motivates them," I said with a sly grin. "If I do you this favor, you got to give me one."

"Fine," Seph said with a rush, "Just make them listen. We have to be at the Mess Hall in a minute. I don't want more chores on my growing pile of them for being late."

"Hey!" I screamed above the chaos of kids. "The Mess Hall is giving out snacks! Let's get going!" I smiled at Seph as the swarm of kids left their beds and rushed past us for the door. Walking past us, Eric gave me a grin.

"Well," Seph said as we strolled out of the cabin, "That was easy."

"Now to return the favor, let me ditch you with these guys while I go see a friend," I said quickly. I gave myself some space from him as I continued, "I'll just be going to the Infirmary to say hi to her. I'll be back soon. Thanks!" Ignoring his protests and threats, I ran off towards the Infirmary to visit Sam. Seph could handle the kids for awhile on his own…hopefully.

I arrived at the Infirmary cabin a minute later. I bounded up the front steps with surprising energy. All that came to a dead end when I stopped at the door. Aw man, what was I going to say to her? The nervous feeling came back to me as I paused.

"C'mon, Danny, just open the dumb door," I urged myself with a whisper. Taking my advice, I opened the door, stepped into the coolness of the blessed AC controlled room, and closed the door behind me. I was silent as I took in the brightly lit room. It had chairs and cots on one side for the sick. A long counter stretched out on the far wall. The walls were covered with corny kid posters telling the viewers how bad smoking was. Behind the counter was a door leading into a back room.

I walked to the counter on the other side of the room to see what was going on because so far the place was empty. I expected someone to be there. Confused and timid, I lightly tapped the bell there on the paper filled desk.

"Yeah?" Sam said absently while standing up from where she had been crouching behind the counter. A tub full of plastic thermometer caps was in her hands. Her black hair was in her questioning violet eyes. She fell silent and cold as she pushed the stray locks behind her ear when spotting me on the other side of the desk.

"Hey," was my lame greeting.

"Hey, yourself," she said unemotionally. She left us in silence, waiting for me to start something before chewing me out. I decided to get it over with.

"I need your help," I finally said after a nervous sigh.

"Of course you do," Sam said frostily. "And the past month of not needing my help is forgotten, I'm sure."

"Look, I'm sorry, Sam," I weakly apologized.

"No, you don't say you're sorry till I'm finished," Sam snapped at me. I was dismayed to see her falter, tears threatening at the corners of her eyes. I had never seen her cry before. I didn't know what I would have done if she had done so here.

"I can't believe how selfish you can be sometimes, Danny," she said. "You avoid everything that can be painful that comes at you. I don't know why, but you avoided Tucker and me for a whole month, you avoided your parents, you avoided all contact with people, and now you're avoiding eye contact. Look at me, Danny, please."

Wincing, I tore my eyes from a poster to meet her harsh gaze. This was hard for me to take. If it had been some random person, my parents, or Jazz, I would have shrugged it off and moved on. But with Sam it was different. Somehow her words hurt.

"You abandoned us," she told me. "You just _decided_ that ghost fighting was too dangerous for us, so you cut us off completely. It might have given you a good conscious while fighting, but it hurt Tuck and me. Ghost fighting isn't only for you, Danny. It's my life too, you know? Did you ever think of the fact that Tucker and I loved ghost fighting as much as you? We don't care about the consequences. We just liked being with you and fighting. Without those two things our lives are meaningless. So ripping those things away from us, it was like telling us we were meaningless. I don't like feeling that way, Danny. You know this, don't you?"

For a moment I just stared sadly back at her. It was painful to see her this way, especially when I knew it was I who put her in this position. Quietly, I told her, "Yeah, I know. And I can go on with reasons why I did that to you guys, but they don't matter. All that does now is that I'm really sorry and you know I didn't mean to hurt you…or Tuck."

She sighed with some relief. We were both glad to be making up with each other after a month or so of not seeing or speaking to each other. I only realized now how much I missed her. Her absence from my life had been like a growing ache till now. "I know," she said with a faint smile.

We paused and looked around awkwardly because the fragile situation had been delicately settled between us. I guess we didn't know what to do next. I couldn't even remember why I had shown up. It was Sam who remembered for me.

"So…" she said while shooting me a grin, "Vlad owns the camp. How bad is it?"

"How long have you known that he's supreme leader around here?" I asked.

She rolled her eyes, the grin never leaving her lips. "The camp has a website, genius," she said matter-of-factly. "Next time look up the place you're trying to vacation at."

"Well, I didn't think my arch enemy was planning to own the camp I was going to visit," I admitted. "Why didn't you tell me before I left?"

"Well," she said with a guilty little smile, "You didn't answer your phone, so I decided to let you figure it out yourself when you got here. Eye for an eye, which isn't usually my philosophy, but it made me feel better. So what's the damage?"

My eyes traveled to the video camera sitting close to the door, watching us intently or however cameras watch people. I didn't want Vlad to know that I was discussing my issue with him and the beast with Sam. If he found out, he might be true to his word and hurt someone. I needed some place private to tell her what was up with this freaky camp.

"Is there a closet somewhere?" I asked her while rounding the counter. I nodded my head at the camera. She took the hint and showed me into the back room where a mop closet was left open. We crammed ourselves in and shut the door. I used a ball of ectoplasm to light up our little space. The dim, eerie green color splashed across both our faces.

"This is serious," Sam observed, "I guess a lot of stuff has happened the two days I wasn't here."

And there in the closet lit by only my ghost powers, I told her my whole story starting at my first meeting with Seph to the end where I dumped the poor guy off to take care of the kids. Once I got started, the words flowed off my tongue with swift relief. Getting it out was like therapy for my head. Sam listened, understood, and most importantly believed everything I told her. It felt so good to have a friend here with me now.

"What are we going to do?" Sam asked, looking a bit apprehensive in the green light.

I opened my mouth to answer her, but faint footsteps prevented me from continuing. We made eye contact. I put an index finger to my lips to tell her to keep silent before taking away the ectoplasm ball. The closet plunged into darkness. All we could hear was our quiet breathing, the footsteps, and the faint hum of the AC system.

Through the slit of light at the bottom of the door, Sam and I saw two dark shadows emerge which indicated someone was standing right outside. Sam lightly touched my arm in either fright or nervousness. I waited for the inevitable.

As predicted, whoever was on the other side of the door twisted the knob. It only took a second for all of us to realize that the door was locked. Sam and I breathed sighs of relief. I gave her a smile in the darkness, though she couldn't see it. A moment later it was replaced by a frown.

"I know you're in there, Daniel," Vlad's voice reached us from the other side of the barrier of wood separating us. I felt Sam stiffen beside me. My own neck hairs were rising with anticipation. Instead of answering the man, I kept silent.

"And I know that your little Sam friend is with you," Vlad continued. His voice was hard and cold. He meant business. "I just came to tell you that I won't tolerate anything from both of you. You might find it heroic and cute to try and figure me and this camp out with her, boy, but that warning from the other night and this morning is still on. I'll be showing up to remind you of it frequently." There was a pause before he said, "And Daniel, don't forget you have lifeguard duty in an hour." I could picture his wicked grin before he left us completely.

"Lifeguard duty?" Sam asked me once Vlad was gone.

"It was Seph's and mine punishment for swimming in the pool last night," I grumbled. The last thing I wanted to do was sit there watching kids dunking and splashing each other for an hour straight in the blistering sun.

"Let's get out of this closet," Sam said with a sigh. "It smells like vomit."

I blushed sheepishly because she was correct…and it was mine from last night. There was no way I was going to tell her this little fact, though. Some things are better left to themselves.

Stupidly, I turned the locked door knob to get out. I could picture the smirk on Sam's face the moment I let go of the handle. "Shut up," I told her before she could come up with some sarcastic remark.

"Wasn't going to say anything," she said, unsuccessfully keeping down a chuckle.

I grabbed her shoulder while turning intangible. Easily pushing through the bonds of the solid object, I phased us both through the door without even having to turn ghost. Once I was able to have more control over my ghost powers, I could do simple tasks without having to change forms. It comes in handy.

Once we were out of the closet, Sam turned to me and asked, "How much do you trust this Seph kid?"

I shrugged. "He's cool, but what Vlad said to me about him has made me suspicious," I said. "Why do you ask?"

"Despite Vlad's constant threats, which are quite creepy, I still want to figure this mystery out," Sam said. "If Vlad is bold enough to tell you to back off, that means he's serious, which means this whole camp is in serious trouble. You and I know that, and I know that you want to keep everyone out of danger. Our only problem is getting around Vlad. Apparently he's keeping a close eye on you."

It was nice to have someone with me that could so plainly and easily voice all my latest feelings. Sam's quick and smart summary somehow made me relax some more. I wasn't in this mess alone. The feeling was comforting.

"So you want another person to help us," I guessed what she was thinking. "Usually we have Tucker to help us, but he's gone on vacation to the beach or something, right?"

Sam rolled her eyes. "He told me he would be girl watching the whole time," she said with a sigh. "Can he get any more shallow?"

I laughed at her actions. "The dude is on vacation, let him look at girls in skimpy bikinis all he wants," I told her. "Besides, it's not like he doesn't girl watch at school. But how are we going to cope without our techno-geek?"

"From your description of Seph, I think he's our guy," Sam said. Her violet eyes were wide with the excitement of the situation. She really did like this ghost hunting thing, didn't she? "I mean, he has a laptop, doesn't he?" she asked. "He might not be as smart as Tuck with it, but he's the only other person who's seen this monster thing and survived. I think we should tell him what's going on and what we want to do…just leave out your ghost powers and stuff."

"Yeah, I don't want that bit of information getting out," I said as a good understatement. "But when and where are we going to tell him this? Vlad has video cameras in all the buildings except for the cabins, and Seph and I will always be accompanied by our kids when we're in there."

Sam paused to think on the subject. Her eyes lit up as an idea came to her. "This place has a lake, right?" she asked.

"Yeah," I said slowly, not knowing where she was going with this.

"Every camp that I've been to with a lake always have those little buildings that hold fishing gear and life vests," she explained. "Did you see one while you were there?"

"That is a perfect idea!" I said with a grin.

"Where would you be without me?" she asked teasingly.

"Hopeless, I'm sure," I played along with her. "When do you want to meet the guy?"

"You know how the schedule says that before lights out that we have a camp fire meeting," she said, "Skip the camp fire and meet me there, okay?"

"Sounds good," I said with a nod. "I didn't want to sing cheesy camp fire songs anyways."

Sam grinned beautifully at me before saying, "Dido that."

A/N: Whew! Somehow every chapter I'm creating these days comes out longer than I expect them to. Oh well. As long as they come out on time, I'm satisfied. Hope you readers like the fic so far. As usual, the next update won't be until two weeks from now. See you guys then.


	7. Chapter 7 Fatal Nightmare

A/N: I've been so very busy this week. I just had a rugby scrimmage a few hours ago. My team won, which was great. And by the way, this chapter is sending some more creepiness your way. I'm finding it fun writing horror. It lets your imagination explore the unknown, dark regions of your head. I never thought that I could think so much freaky stuff. Enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: Wishing gets you nowhere. That's why I don't own Danny Phantom or CHERUB.

Chapter 7 Fatal Nightmare

Hands in pockets, looking relaxed for once, I strolled down the small incline toward the lake that sat lonely out on the outskirts of the camp grounds. With the arrival of Sam, my spinning and hectic world had been slowed down to a normal pace. I felt like I wasn't in a constant state of confusion and hesitation to make decisions. She had so easily formed a plan that I wondered how I ever survived that month without her or Tuck. They really did contribute to my ghost fighting.

The night seemed young and fresh as I walked. The air itself smelt like the refreshing pine air that I had enjoyed the moment I stepped off the bus. The nighttime bugs and animals were by now singing and chirping for supremacy over the darkness. They were like nature's symphony. I'm sounding like Sam on one of her hippie rants, aren't I? Well, the presence of trees can do that to you sometimes. No joke.

I watched as the lake gave off a cool white mist as I stopped at one of its sandy shores. The sight of the swirling and mysterious clouds made the scene kind of creepy. Uncomfortable somewhat, I turned to see if Seph was following close behind me. It was hard to spot anything in the dark, but the abundance of fireflies kind of gave the land a faint glow.

Sure enough, my cabin mate was steadily walking down the lone gravel path. His laptop was tucked under one of his toned arms. I walked back to the path, shooting the guy a small and nervous smile. He ignored it as he kept to himself and his own thoughts. I found myself once again wondering what the guy was thinking.

"What did you do with the kids?" I asked him just to make conversation.

"I left Eric in charge," Seph answered. "That kid is the only sensible one of the bunch. Thank God we got at least one responsible one."

"Amen to that," I muttered. I was thankful for Eric. He had proven to be a good and reasonable kid throughout the day. Sometimes it felt like he was a third counselor. Where would Seph and I be without him?

We arrived at the small lake house a few minutes later. It was a tiny building, built for only storage. It was made out of rocks, cement, and had a steeple wooden roof. It looked like a quaint mini cottage, complete with a miniature window. From that window was a soft orange light of a lantern. Sam was already inside waiting for us.

I ushered Seph into the lake house and closed the door behind me. Sam had taken a wooden table from a corner and put it into the center of the cabin and set her lantern on it. I watched in silence as Seph and Sam summed each other with quick and snappish looks. Seph placed his laptop on the table before him.

"Okay, Fenton, why did you bring me here to your secret hideout?" Seph asked finally. He looked suspicious and flighty with his arms crossed firmly across his chest and a serious frown planted on his lips. Sam and I would have to explain fast to keep his attention.

"We need your help," I said, getting right to the point. "Something weird and freaky is going on with this camp. Sam and I want to know what is going on. We can't do that by just ourselves, so we want you to help us."

"Does this have to do with that monster from last night?" Seph asked me.

"Yeah," I said with a nod. "Sam and I want to know what that thing is and stop it from hurting anything else like it did with Amanda."

Seph looked back and forth between Sam and me. I think it was just then sinking into his head that we were serious about this. "Why not ask Masters about it?" he asked.

"He won't believe us," I said. "You saw all the adults last night. They didn't believe a word we said after seeing Amanda walking around like a normal person. My sister didn't even believe me when I tried explaining it to her."

"Then why did your girlfriend, here, believe you?" Seph asked. He indicated the girlfriend by throwing his head over to Sam.

"I'm not his girlfriend," Sam said with a sigh. After a while, you get tired of saying that to everyone you meet. Why does everyone Sam and I know first assume that we're a couple? "And to answer your question, I've seen creepy stuff a million times before."

"So you guys have seen a few ghosts because Danny's parents hunt them," Seph said with a shrug. "What makes you two believe that we can hunt down and kill this monster thing?"

"Actually, we kind of ghost fight ourselves," I said with a cocky smile. "My parents are great at making gadgets that work at catching ghosts, but they aren't very skilled at using them. For fun, really, Sam and I ghost hunt with my parents' gadgets. Plus, our town has a constant number of ghosts flowing through it. We just think that it should be our job to keep the population down. Some ghosts are pretty dangerous."

Seph flashed us a cruel smile while asking, "You guys ghost fight? Sorry, Danny, but right now you look more like a nerd than a big, tough superhero." He laughed at the thought of me kicking ghost butt.

"Show him, Sam," I told my Goth friend with a nod.

Sam heaved a backpack up onto the wobbly table. She poured the contents out for all of us to see in the lamp light. Being the smart ghost fighter she was, Sam had brought as much equipment from my parents' basement before leaving to camp. I felt proud to have this girl on my side.

"Jeez!" Seph whistled in shock at the sight of the high-tech equipment. "This stuff is wicked." He fingered one of the wrist lasers and accidentally triggered it. A green ray shot out of the device, ripped clean through a life vest, and left a two inch diameter hole in the thing hanging on the wall. Seph was left staring at it in stunned silence.

"Too bad you didn't get your hands on my mom's bazooka," I said to Sam with a grin.

"It didn't fit in the backpack," Sam said, mirroring my grin.

"Okay, I'm convinced," Seph said with a nervous laugh. Now that clear evidence was before him, he believed what we had said. I think he found it cool because his eyes were wide in wonder and excitement, like a kid in a toy store. "What does all this have to do with me, though?" he asked. "I didn't even believe in the supernatural till just the other night. I'm not a ghost fighter. I don't know the first thing about them."

"Excellent question," Sam said. "The reason why we want your help is because you've seen the monster and believe in it. From what Danny has told me, you have some brains. You know how to pick locks and use a laptop."

"Besides," I added, "You don't even want to be here. Do you really want to spend the rest of the month babysitting a bunch of ten-year-olds? I know you well enough by now to know that sneaking around this camp trying to figure out a mystery is something you would rather spend your time on."

Seph had a look of deep thought on his face. It looked like he really did want to join us, but something was holding him back. It was the fist time that I saw the guy unsure of himself.

The English boy gave a long sigh as he ran a hand through his hair. He finally grinned at us as he said, "So what do you need me to do first?"

Sam and I shared triumphant smiles.

"We think Vlad Masters knows about this monster," I said. "He's always been creepy, but lately he's been extra creepy. I think he's hiding the monster from the rest of the camp. I don't know, maybe he's scared of making it go public. He's the mayor of Sam's and mine town, so having a rampaging monster in his camp is bad for his polls. He doesn't want us figuring it out or telling anyone about it."

"He's already threatened you about it," Sam pointed out.

"That would explain why he was in our room this morning," Seph said.

"Yeah," I said. I liked the fact that he had added it all together so quickly. "So our biggest problem right now is Vlad. We need him occupied with something other than us."

"That is where you and your laptop come in," I let Sam pick up. "We want Danny to email his parents about seeing a ghost here and how he wants them to come check it out. Knowing his parents, they will surely drive on over. Vlad will then have to keep them off the monster's trail, leaving us three to move around the camp with some breathing room. Will you let us use your laptop then?"

"I'd love to, but Master's has some blocking device for messages from any user it doesn't recognize," Seph explained. "Trust me; I've tried to send tons of emails to my girlfriend in the UK. All of them come back to me. If you want to send out that email, you're going to have to get to Master's personal computer."

My shoulders slumped in disappointment. It was a good idea, but Vlad had thought of everything. How were we going to get into his office without being spotted by all his cameras? I mean, I could easily turn invisible and get into there without being detected, but then we would have to explain that to Seph.

"There's a way to get past the video cameras," Seph told us in a rush. "I've been thinking of this idea for some time because I was going to pull another prank on the guy. All cameras need an energy source. If the lights go out, so do the cameras. I know where the generator room is that shuts off everything. It's in the Mess Hall. All we have to do is turn the lights on and off a few times to make it look like it's just a generator problem. But while the lights are out from the many times we do this, Danny and I sneak into Master's office. I'll get into the computer and he writes the email. By the time the lights are back on, the email will be sent and we'll be out of there. Simple."

"Whoa," Sam said, practically speechless. I was as shocked as she was.

"I wouldn't have used the word simple," I said. "You're not a genius in disguise, are you?"

Seph suddenly realized how complicated his plan had sounded. He looked rattled by his slip of tongue. I could see him sweat under the pressure. I didn't understand why he felt so uncomfortable by spouting that kind of brilliant information. Maybe he just didn't like being viewed as a geek.

"Look, I'm not the smart person you think I am," he tried to explain. "My dad just taught me this kind of stuff. He was kind of a thief…and I…I sometimes went on raids with him, okay? But please don't tell anyone. If my mum found out…." He faded off as the thought seemed to upset him too much.

"Hey, Seph, you're secret is safe with us," Sam told him with genuine concern. "We don't care what you did. We were just blown away how you thought that all up on the spot. Danny and I just don't think that way, I guess."

"Yeah, dude, you're our friend," I said as reassurance. "It's not like we're going to rat you out. That would be stupid and mean."

This seemed to calm the kid a bit. He still looked uncertain about it all, but he kept that emotion to himself. Seph gave us a small, thin smile before saying quietly, "Cheers you guys."

"No problem, man," I said with a confident grin. I glanced over to Sam to see her frowning slightly. Either she didn't like having a thief on her side, or was just thinking hard. Maybe it was a mix of the two.

"So do you guys like the plan?" Seph asked us. "I personally think it's foolproof." The guy was back to his prideful self in no time.

"How 'bout you plan it out tonight and we all meet up here tomorrow night at the same time to go over it?" I said. "We need to give Vlad some space and time. He can't assume anything, okay?"

"Sounds like a plan, mate," Seph said. "We better get back to the campfire, though. The adults will be wondering why Eric is taking care of all of Cabin 2."

"You go ahead," I told him as he grabbed the laptop off the table and headed for the door. He glanced back behind his shoulder to look at me. "Sam and I need to talk some more." He shot a quick, curious look at Sam before returning his eyes to mine. I could see the question on his face before he nodded then left the small cabin.

"What do we need to talk about?" Sam asked me as if defending herself.

"You don't like him," I put it rather blatantly.

Her frown deepened, my clear indicator that I had gotten it right. It's so easy to read a friend's emotions by just watching their expressions. Sometimes it's nice…until they use the same trick on you. Then it's just annoying.

"It's complicated," she finally professed.

"So you like having a genius with us, but you don't like having a thief," I stated. I was being pretty blunt that day, wasn't I?

"No, yes, kind of," she said, jumbling up emotions with her words. She grabbed the thin metal handle of the lantern and rung it with her slim fingers out of frustration. "He's perfect with helping us take Vlad down and finding out what that monster is," she said with a sigh, "But there's something about him I don't trust. And it's not just the thief thing."

"Then what is it?" I asked. "Is it what Vlad said?"

"A little," she admitted. "Maybe I was wrong to suggest he should join us. I mean, what if he finds out you're a ghost? What is going to stop him from telling the world that Danny Fenton is Danny Phantom?"

"I got it under control," I tried to comfort her. "I've been here for three days and I've only gone ghost once. No one saw me. No one knows that Danny Phantom is even here. And you heard him, he barely believes in ghosts. He's not going to suspect that I'm half one."

"Yeah, but what if he does?" Sam said with worry deep in her voice. "I knew this was a bad idea."

"No, Sam, you're the smartest person I know," I told her seriously. I bent down a little to get her to look into my eyes because she had been staring at the floor. I caught her eyes with mine and said with a smile, "Seph might be an arrogant jock, but what he proposed to us was genius at best. It's better that we do everything the hard way instead of using my powers. Vlad expects me to use them. He won't know what hit him if we do it the human way. Right now we need Seph despite the risks of him finding out my secret. You were right to let him join us, okay. And if he does find out, we can always say we'll tell the police about his thieving."

"Blackmail?" Sam asked. One of her black eyebrows rose with the question along with a corner of her lips. I knew she was keeping in a laugh.

I chuckled at the question. Since when did I get so evil? "Maybe some of Seph's dark side has rubbed off on me these past few days," I muttered.

She grinned at me now, the anxiety in her eyes erased for the moment. "At least that dark side has a good plan," she said. "Seph looked pretty upset when he told us he was a thief. That blackmail idea might actually work."

"Hopefully we won't ever have to use it," I said. She agreed.

-Later That Night-

I was running.

The main point was what I was running from. My head wouldn't turn to look back. It was like my body was out of my control. All I could do was feel its heightened, scared emotions and the feeling of each ragged breath and heavy footfall as my body sprinted deeper into the forest.

Tree branches slapped and scraped against my bare arms and legs. I could barely see a thing in the pitch-black blanket of darkness that seemed to have enveloped the entire woods in its binding holds. The air was chilly, but I was sweating from the mad run. My hair stuck to my tear stained and perspired face. The rough, tree rooted terrain was making me constantly fall painfully to the ground only to quickly pick myself up with small screams of terror and continue running.

It didn't take long for me to realize this wasn't my body. The little girl I was in at the moment was the one making the movements and the emotions I was now feeling. Actually, the whole feeling was like overshadowing someone, but minus the control over the body. It was a hard feeling to get used to.

The little girl climbed a steep hillside like her life depended on it…which was true in a way. I had felt the cold, dark feeling of the beast that now chased her. Its presence hung thickly on the crisp night air. It was enjoying its intoxicating thrill of the hunt. Its sick delight was making the air the little girl gasp for strong to swallow and nauseating to every one of the girl's and my own senses.

I could feel the girl's rising and terrorizing fear. It was as powerful as the creature's sick feeling. At times I was right with the girl's panic as if synchronized to her every emotion. At other times I fought the fright and tried to think straight, but this girl was only feeling one thing at this moment, and it was pure fear. There was nothing I could do to help her. I was just along for the ride.

To my great dismay, the girl tripped over a protruding root again. I felt the loss of balance, the fall, and the hard impact. I felt her horror as she forced her head up to finally look death in the face. Through tears, I saw the monster's blood red eyes as the black figure rushed forward.

A scream lodged in her, no, our throat. I was part of this now. She and her terrible experience and death were a part of me even to this day.

The beast slammed into our body, forced us onto our back with a clawed paw. We innocently pleaded for mercy from this creature. Sobs racked our body as the monster reared its head up. In one, painful moment, it plunged its long snout into our stomach. Its teeth dug into our skin, tearing everything. Blood was everywhere. Our body was covered in the thick, warm liquid. We couldn't breathe through the agonizing pain.

There was a tug right before we died. I was dropped into the girl's soul room. It was of a colorful kid park with swings, a jungle gym, and slides. A warm breeze swept past me. The swing set was filled with giggling kids. It was a nice, fun soul room. The perfect place for a ten-year-old girl.

The girl appeared in front of me. She ran toward me, a hand stretched out as if to reach for me with it. "Help me!" she screamed desperately. Tears filled her big, deep brown eyes. She screamed one last time, "Please! Help me!"

"I will!" I heard myself scream back at her. "I promise, I will!"

She and the soul room then taken over by a swirl of cold and foreboding darkness. I was returned to the body that was being eaten alive by the beast. With the girl's soul gone, I was in control. I cried out, the pain overbearing as it ripped through my entire system. I had never felt anything so excruciating. The beast put a clawed paw over my mouth as it dug down deeper into my abdomen. I could feel his teeth slice through my flesh and guts till it met its mark.

With the final crush of my spine, I died. And I also awoke.

With a loud gasp for breath and life, I flung my body up and foreword. I was met with a dimly lit Cabin 2 and its snoring occupants that slept peacefully on sleeping bags and pillows on creaking metal bunk beds. Eyes wide with fear and panic, I stared down at my legs as I took in long, desperate breaths. It took me some time to get my head clear enough to see that I was still alive and that it was only a dream…a real vivid and painful dream. I could still feel a ping in my stomach.

"Hey, you okay?" Seph asked me in a whisper from where he was on his bed across the room from mine.

I was still breathing hard when I snapped my head his way. The teen had his laptop out. Its glowing screen lit up Seph's face with eerie white light that put everything it touched into deep shadows. Seph looked truly concerned about me. He waited with suspense for my answer to his question.

I didn't answer at first. There was a long pause as I screamed at myself in my head to calm down. Finally, I said in a weary and shaky whisper, "Nightmare."

"It must have been pretty bad," Seph whispered back so as to not wake the kids. "You scared the hell out of me when you woke up like that. You sure you're okay?" I guess he could see the tears welling up in my eyes as I thought back to the death of that little girl. Maybe he could even see me shaking uncontrollably in the darkness.

I shook my head no, not trusting my voice. Sniffing, I pushed the tears away with the palms and backs of my hands. I had to grit my teeth together and force myself to get a grip. It had only been a bad dream…right? Somehow I knew it hadn't been a dream and that another person had met their demise under the dark and evil powers of Vlad's monster. I winced at the thought.

It had killed again. I had been powerless to stop it. This fact made me feel useless and pathetic. Besides me being upset because of my helpless position, I was distraught about the murder itself. I had been connected with this little girl's soul for a short time, but I had felt and experienced everything with her. No one should have suffered like she had. Just merely the thought of it brought hot tears to my eyes.

"That bad?" Seph asked me quietly.

I didn't look at him as I said, "Yeah." I think he understood the depths of a bad dream, but I don't think he would have believed me if I had told him that it was true and that somewhere in the woods a little girl had just been killed by the beast.

"Sorry, dude," Seph said awkwardly. "If it makes you feel better, I think I got the plan finished."

Wiping away the last of my tears, I looked over to him. I forced a smile before saying, "That's good."

Seph powered down his laptop. The room was plunged into complete darkness with the exception of a digital clock that glowed 5:12 in faded green neon light. "We have around two or three hours till breakfast," Seph told me with a tired yawn. "We should both get some sleep."

I didn't respond as I lay back in my bed. I gripped the end of my sleeping bag in apprehension and stared up at the dark ceiling. I stayed that way for a long time. At some point I drifted off to sleep again and was met with only a numb, black void.

That morning I awoke to having a set of blank, vacant eyes staring into my own.

I screamed.

A/N: I couldn't help it with the cliffhanger. I know, I'm mean. I don't have much else to say but thanks for your reviews. They've been great! See you guys in two weeks!


	8. Chapter 8 Swamp Mysteries

A/N: Teachers suck! Get this. My GPA is 3.9. I'm taking AP Honors English and another weighted course this year. I don't slack. If I had to label myself I'd be one of those perfectionist over achiever artsy-fartsy type kids in school. I present my graduation project today to my teachers, and they tell me that I can't pass because I answered three simple questions in my Power Point instead of in a speech. I didn't meet the criteria is what they said! WHAT? Hell no! That does NOT help the depression I'm going through at the moment! Thank you idiot teachers for putting me in the one percent of teens that failed the project this year! Now I'm equivalent to a pot head that just smoked weed before doing their project and failed just like me. Ug! Okay, my rant is over. Sorry to freak out on you poor readers. Enjoy your chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom or CHERUB characters.

Chapter 8 Swamp Mysteries

Apparently screaming in a cabin full of kids as their wakeup call wasn't a wise choice. The second I let the yelp loose, the boys were all forced awake with their own cries of alarm. Even Seph sat up with a startled look on his sleep laden face.

But I couldn't help it. One second I was sleeping with darkness, the next I was staring into the vacant eyes Tom, the smallest and most talkative of all the boys Seph and I had been assigned to take care of that month. His sudden and creepy presence freaked the crap out of me. I don't usually wake up to someone staring into my face like that.

Pushing away from the boy and flattening my back against the wall, I realized what I had done was a bad move. One, the eyes only belonged to Tom and there was no point to scream bloody murder. Two, I had just woken everyone up with adrenaline pumping through their systems. And three, now all of them were looking at me and expecting an explanation for the rude awakening. Although Eric just looked more worried about me than mad that I had woken him up.

"What the hell is going on?" Seph asked me incredulously, "Another freaking nightmare?" I think he was fed up with me scaring him this way.

"No, I…um," I stumbled for the right words, trying not to look like an idiot but looking like one anyways. "Tom just scared me when I woke up," I finally got out. I looked at him and asked, "What were you doing staring at me like that?"

"I was hungry," was his response. The other kids either laughed or moaned from the stupid answer. But what got me was the lack of emotion in the kid's voice and face. It hadn't been robotic, but it seemed almost forced. I looked him up and down and saw the same thing I had noticed with Amanda.

I had to cover my mouth up with a hand to keep in my alarm and fear. The pale skin, the lifeless eyes, and the strange and forced behavior were all clear signs that he had been a victim last night. The feeling gave me a cold rush down my spine. He had died last night and I wouldn't have even known it if he hadn't caused a scene that morning. It sent a flash of panic through my brain. How many others had been killed by that monster last night? How many would there be tomorrow?

This was unsettling. It was almost too much.

I watched with despair as the kids all lazily got out of their beds, didn't bother to make them, and head to the bathroom to take showers and change after snatching clothes out of poorly packed suitcases. With the exception of Eric who paused to glance with concern back at me in the doorway, no one else really noticed my detached and forlorn behavior.

How long would it take the monster to kill the rest of these innocent boys? How long did I have?

-Week Later-

"Hurry, dude, hurry," I urged Seph from where I hovered over his shoulder. "We have three minutes left to get out of here."

"Going as fast as I can, Fenton," Seph said through clenched teeth. Nerves had made us both rigged.

From what I was seeing, I had no clue what he was doing. All I was focused on was the seconds that were ticking away as I stole quick glances at my watch. Seph had already spent two minutes hacking into Vlad's computer, easily bypassing passwords and firewalls with swift and precise flicks of his fingers on the keyboard.

We had waited a week after our first meeting to set the email plan in motion. That had given all of us time to go over Seph's plan. That whole time we had set up random attacks to the generator room. After day two of us turning the power on and off erratically, the campers and everyone else had gotten used to it. But what mattered most was that Vlad had bought into the scheme too. He suspected nothing.

"I got it! I got in!" Seph announced excitedly. He pushed away from the computer desk for me to take over with writing the email. We had decided as a group that it was best that I wrote it. Seph could have easily have done it and my parents would maybe believe it, but it would be less awkward and quicker if I had memorized my message for them and typed it myself.

Absentmindedly, I recited the note out loud as I typed it out at lightning pace. My fingers flew over the keyboard with surprising speed. My computer keyboarding teacher would have been proud of me because I was going at least 90 gwam.

Seph was busy scanning the bookshelf on the wall the whole time. I stole some quick glances his way, but I had no clue if he was looking for something or just trying to pass the time. I didn't have the time to think about it and debate the subject because it only took maybe a minute to type my email.

"Done!" I told him.

"Send it, then, stupid!" he shouted at me. Stressful situations usually got him into a snappish mood.

Cursing the cumbersome mouse as I grabbed it, I guided the cursor to the send button and clicked. Seph was already by the door now. For a fleeting second I saw a message box pop up onto the screen then vanish before I could read it, telling me that my email had been sent I guessed. I almost didn't catch it, it was that quick.

"Turn it off and move!" Seph ordered me from the doorway. "Sam is going to turn it back on in only 30 seconds."

Without a word I clicked out of the email system, pounded the shutdown button, and raced across the room after making sure everything looked like it had been before we had entered. Seph locked the door behind us as I raced out of Vlad's office. We ran out of the cabin after locking the main door.

The gravel under our sneakers crunched as we rushed back to our cabin in silence. In the distance, we could hear a game of volleyball being played on a sand pit a few cabins way from Vlad's. I had to bring up an arm to keep the sharp, red rays of a sunset blazing on the horizon ahead of us.

The familiar smells and sights of the camp flashed by us as we sprinted past cabins and playing fields of all different kinds. We really had no reason to run, but for some reason it felt better. After living here for more than a week, the ever present nature, the cabins, and kids were like home to me. This place would have been so nice if it had ended up as my vacation spot.

Too bad Vlad had to ruin it. He likes doing that to me often, doesn't he? I guess that's what I should expect from a bad guy, but c'mon, can't the superhero get at least a day off? Is it wrong for me to say that by now I was tired to being a good guy? Maybe I just needed a break. But as you can see, I was far from one that month. Like always, I was going to have to deal.

We blasted into our empty cabin, out of breath and laughing with the great feeling of success. The kids were at the pool for the hour, so Seph and I had a few minutes of free time in our cabin without the chaos ten-year-old boys create. It was only when we stood side by side catching our breath that I noticed that Seph had stolen the book.

"What is that?" I asked him wearily. The thief was going to get us killed if he had stolen that thing out of Vlad's mini library. I had to suppress a groan because of Seph's reckless actions.

"Just one of Vlad's dusty old books," Seph answered with a proud grin. He sat down on his bed and opened the delicate parchment pages to take a look at his new prize. I frowned while sitting down next to him and glanced at the pages. What else could I do?

"What is it talking about?" I asked with an uninterested sigh. It was all written in some other confusing language that gave me a brain cramp. It also had faded pictures that started to pique my curiosity. Many of these illustrations consisted of a stone with rays of red light coming out of it.

Why would there be a book all about a stupid rock? It didn't make sense. But then again, Vlad never made much sense at times. Maybe he just liked reading about glowing rocks. This logic was skeptical on my part, though. There had to be something special about the dumb stone that I just wasn't getting.

"Some of this stuff looks like alchemy," Seph said as he flipped through pages with boredom crossing his features.

"Alchemy?" I asked. I took the book away from him and turned back to a page with a big picture of this rock the book was so obsessed over. This time it depicted the stone with black mist-like auras converging with it. Strange was I could say.

"It was the first science," Seph explained. "Alchemists believed that everything was made out of four main elements. They thought that they could change some element into gold too, the idiots. Alchemy just ended up being a mystical voodoo type thing, dealing with the supernatural and crap. If you've ever taken chemistry class, they go over this stuff."

"But what's with the rock?" I asked. The mention of supernatural had sent a red flag up in my brain. Everything that was happening with this camp was supernatural. This book had significance somehow. I wanted to know what.

"I don't know," Seph snapped back, irritated with the questions. "Go ask Sam. She seems like the type that likes that kind of old mystic crap."

I flipped through the pages and came upon a newspaper clipping that had been stuffed in between them. "Look at this," I said while holding the fragile paper up for Seph to see. His eyebrows rose with interest when he saw flimsy paper.

I read the small print carefully. "It talks about how this place used to be a mining town. Apparently it was only going for a year or two then suddenly stopped abruptly with the death of half the miners! They had struck some kind of tunnel in their digging and the police ruled the deaths out as because of a cave in from a large earthquake in this area. The place was then quickly abandoned. It is now believed to be a ghost town."

"Yeah, that's what the brochure said," Seph said emotionlessly. That meant he was thinking. He always became deadpan when he pondered something.

"You believe it really was a cave in?" I asked him.

"No," Seph answered. "The monster seems more like it. What about you?"

I pressed my lips together in deep thought. It sounded like the monster had been found and killed half the miners, but how could we be sure? A smile crossed my lips as a thought came.

"Tomorrow on our hour hike," I said, "Let's go visit the mining sight."

"Sure," Seph said with a nervous chuckle, "And if we bump into that beast again, I'll be the first to run the hell out of there, okay?" At least we had a plan.

-The Next Day-

"Why aren't we on the path anymore?" Josh, one of our boys, asked Seph and I.

"We're just taking a little detour," Seph lied flawlessly. "Think of it as an adventure."

"It would be more adventurous if Tony didn't always fall over," Josh muttered as he ran on ahead. As if on cue, Tony, the big kid of our group, tripped over a tree root, let out a short scream, and did a face plant in the tall grass and leaves. He wasn't the graceful one of the bunch, I'll say that much.

"We're getting close," I told Seph in a whisper.

"How can you tell?" Seph asked, surprised.

"Can't you feel it?" I asked him. The feel of that beast hung heavily on the air. All around me I could feel remnants of the horrid creature. It wasn't there, but I could feel that it had been here many times before, just like I could still feel its haunting presence in the bathroom by the pool. Whenever the air became thick and hard to breath, where the hairs on your arms and back of neck stood up, and when you feel a pit forming in your stomach, you know the beast had visited that very spot.

Lately, I had experienced that feeling at random places throughout the camp. The monster was striking a few kids every night. And every night I had terrifying nightmares like my first one with that girl with the park for her soul room. Each one ended with me going to the victim's soul room then being killed. They were all painful and devastating like the first one. I had to get used to feeling a sharp sting in my stomach every morning I woke up.

"I don't feel anything," Seph told me. "Just some goose bumps, but that's it."

"I feel it," Eric said softly from where he was walking beside me. He looked serious and a bit apprehensive. "Where are you taking us, Danny?"

I hated to lie to Eric because the boy was so helpful and cool with Seph's and mine wild and random antics to take down Vlad. He deserved some truth for once. "We're going to check out an old mining sight," I said. "How come you feel it like I do?" I asked him.

The boy pondered the question for a second then looked back up to me and said, "You wouldn't understand right now. When you are ready to listen, I will tell you." He then ran off to join the group of boys ahead of us. They had found some mining car tracks that were fully entangled with vines and other plant life.

Talk about cryptic wording.

"Crazy little brat," Seph muttered with a confused frown. "What was that supposed to mean?"

"Wish I knew," I said with the same puzzled expression. "Do you think he knows about the beast?"

"Yeah," Seph said. "I've been hearing weird rumors from the kids that there is a ghost haunting the camp grounds. It is meant to be a camp fire scary story, but I think some of the kids believe it. He might be the ones who do."

We walked by the group of kids who had stationed themselves around an old and broken mining car on the tracks. They had set up a game of tag. Their laughs and calls echoed off the trees as they played. I noticed that Tom was the only one not playing. He stood off the side, watching them with a blank stare. His creepy actions were starting to be noticed by the other boys, but they did a good job ignoring the kid. His stare still sent shivers down my spine, though.

_Snap_!

A scream escaped me as I felt my footing and balance leave me as the root I had been standing on broke underneath my feet. I plummeted down the steep decline of terrain. The ride down the hill was painful as I tumbled head over heels. Trees whizzed inches away from my vulnerable head. It was a miracle how I didn't crash into one and bash my skull open. Branches and leaves were like needles as they scratched up any showing skin as I rushed downward at an alarming pace.

It was easy to get disoriented when you're rolling down a hill. I didn't know what was happening when I suddenly slammed into water. The harsh and cold impact took the breath right out of me. I took in a gasp of water as my dizzy head floated in disorder. I fought to get to the surface of the dark void I had landed in.

Coughing and choking on the smelly swamp water and whatever gross fungus that grew on its surface, I had finally found the surface and the sweetness of precious air. I grabbed and latched onto a thick root of an enormous tree that was growing on the surface of the swamp.

I gasped when I heard soft and whispered voices behind me. I whipped my head around, eyes wide with fright and confusion. My wet hair hung in my eyes, but I saw nothing there. And the voices kept coming. I looked around to pinpoint the location of the voices, but they were all around me. I couldn't make out anything they were saying, but I knew they were all trying to tell me or warn me about something. The sensation was freaking me out to no end. My heart raced and I took in sharp, ragged breaths as my brain spun in all different directions.

"Help me. Please. Help me."

The voice made me freeze. I think my heart literally stopped for a second. The all too familiar blue mist whisked out from my open mouth. I looked up and saw a golf ball sized sphere hovering right above my head. It shimmered a faint blue. It was a ghost.

The voice from the sphere seemed to come from far away and echoed. "You promised," it said. "You promised you would help me."

"How?" I whispered. I still don't know why I asked that. I knew who the ghost was, though. It was that little girl from my first nightmare. I had promised to her that I would help. If I could still somehow, I wanted to.

"Only the purest of souls can defeat it," the sphere told me with no emotion. "It searches for the darkest. Do not let it find yours."

"My what?" I asked eagerly. "Do not let it find my what?"

"Help me," was the poor ghost's only response before it drifted away into the thick foliage of the swamp. I was left with the soft whispers and eerie voices.

"Danny!"

The shout of my name yanked me out of my daze. I jerked my head away from where I had been staring after the sphere ghost with a loud gasp. Seph and Eric were carefully sliding down the hillside till they reached the swamp's water edge. That was where Eric stopped and hung onto a tree. He looked around as if he too were hearing the voices that were floating through my head. Seph on the other hand, crashed right through the water to get over to me.

"Holy crap!" Seph was saying loudly. He looked scared to death as he sloshed his way through the black, murky water to get over to me. "Are you alright, Fenton? Jeez! I thought you were gonna die or something 'cause of that brutal hill!"

"No," I answered after a pause. "I think I'm okay. Just…do you hear those voices?"

Seph had grabbed my arm and was yanking me toward the shore when I asked this random question. He stopped and frowned at me when I said this. Wincing, he said, "That gash on your head must have made you a bit whacky. Let's get you over to Sam." It was then that he noticed something. "What's that on your arm?"

I looked at my arm and saw a black thing sticking to it. For a second I couldn't place what the thing was. I looked at my other arm to see two more of the black things that looked like slugs. After a moment of looking my sodden body over, I realized there were at least a dozen of these things sticking to me. Then all the sudden it came to me.

"AH!" I screamed, "Get them off me! Get these leeches off me!"

I ran up to the bank of the swamp in total freak out mode, thrashing around and screaming insanely. Eric had to take a few steps away to avoid getting knocked over by my wild and erratic movements. The little slimy parasites were all over my back and arms, sucking the blood right out of me. And no matter how hard I pulled, the little suckers stayed put.

"Stop! Calm down!" Seph yelled at me. He managed to grab a hold onto one of my arms and force me to stay still so he could tell me, "They aren't gonna come off until your bone dry. The only good way to get leeches off you is to burn them off, okay. Crap, you're a mess today! Bash your forehead open, think you hear voices, and then scream like a bloody school girl when you realize a few leeches have decided that you're their host. Let's get you to the infirmary. Jeez, I do not want to be you today!"

A/N: The mystery continues. Poor Danny. He's not having a good vacation at the moment, is he? I think I'd freak out too if I had leeches on me. Parasites in general give me a creepy fascination. Have a great Easter weekend guys, and I'll see ya'll in two weeks!


	9. Chapter 9 The Shocking Truth

A/N:

A/N: This chapter, I'd have to say, has been my favorite to write. Just as a heads up, there is a bit of a torture scene in this chapter, but I wouldn't worry about it. I just want to warn some of the more squeamish readers out there. Oh, but this is a fun one to read, so I won't delay it any farther. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I own nothing of this fic but its plot and some minor characters.

Chapter 9 The Shocking Truth

"Then it floated away," I finished up telling Sam my swamp fiasco as she cleaned up the gash on my forehead. Seph had gone off to take care of the kids while Sam had done the painful job of taking off the leeches from my back and arms. It wasn't a fun experience. Enough said.

Sam and I were in the infirmary cabin. I sat backwards on a chair as she dipped a cloth into a bowl of water and dabbed it on my bloody and sore forehead. Sometimes we would glance over to the video camera watching us, but there was nothing we could do about it. Because it had no sound, I decided to tell Sam my story about the sphere ghost I had ran into at the swamp. We tried to make it look like just two old friends talking about camp life.

"You sure it was that girl from your first nightmare?" Sam asked me. She pressed the blood stained rag against my head and smiled sardonically when I hissed in pain. "Don't be such a baby," she told me. "You've had worse."

"Yeah, but that was when I was in ghost form," I muttered. "Everything is less painful when I'm a ghost. I hate having to be stuck in human form. It's been days since I last turned ghost. I miss it."

"Really?" she asked with curiosity. I had never told her this. "So do have, like, urges to go ghost when you go days without being one?"

"Kind of," I answered. "It gets worse over time. I've never gone over a week without going ghost. Sometimes I just have to transform in my bedroom at home to release energy. But here, there are cameras everywhere. I haven't gotten the chance." I chuckled at the thought. "Maybe I'm going insane because of ghost withdraw. You think I'm addicted?"

Sam pressed a small patch of gauze to my wound and taped it down with careful and precise movements. She laughed lightly at my question. "I don't know," she told me with a smile. Those smiles of hers always seemed to captivate me. I didn't notice at the moment that I was staring at her. "Just be more careful next time you fall down a hill."

"Maybe I should go check the place out again," I thought out loud. "The place was creepy with two E's, but I know it has to do something with the-."

I was cut off when the door to the cabin opened and in walked Vlad. Sam and I watched silently as the man swiftly crossed the room to the desk without noticing us. It was only when he saw the desk empty and searched the room that he saw us sitting by the cots in a corner.

"Well, isn't this a surprise," Vlad said after a moment of being taken off guard. He spotted my patched up head and asked casually, "What happened, Daniel?"

"Volleyball accident," I lied quickly. I hoped he didn't see my leech scars. That would be harder to lie about. "Seph can spike harder than he believes he can." The tension was high in the room. I tried to play it cool, but I could see Sam grip the damp rag in her hands tightly.

"You can get whiplash if you get hit that hard with a volley ball," Vlad told me as he walked over to us. "I know a way to check and see. Hold still." Without much warning, the man stood behind me and lightly placed his hands on my shoulders. Instantly, my muscles tensed under his touch. He held my head up with his hands as he checked my neck. It took everything in me to keep my butt in that chair. I had to grit my teeth together as I waited for him to be finished.

"You look fine," Vlad finally said with some smug in his voice, "But what are these scars on your arms?" Before I could react, he had grabbed my wrist and was inspecting my arm with his critical gaze. "They look like leech scars." His eyes rose up and looked into mine, daring me to say something.

To tell the truth, I was scared out of my wits. He knew that I was doing something behind his back. The question now was how I was going to be punished for it. That dreaded thought left me paralyzed in his locked gaze.

"Your volleyball pits are too moist," Sam came in to my rescue. Vlad and I looked over to her. Fearlessly, she continued. "Water from the ground is probably leaking into the sand, making it a perfect place for leeches. Danny was just one of the unlucky first to find them there."

"What did you believe I was doing?" I asked Vlad with fake curiosity. Sam's brave and believable story had sparked my confidence. "Is there some place with leeches you don't want me going to?"

Vlad paused as he looked back and forth between Sam and me, deliberating how to react. I guess he decided that he shouldn't have jumped to conclusions because he said firmly to me, "No." He let go of my wrist and stood back up with a bothered frown on his face. "Miss Manson, where is the adult counselor who works here? I came in here to talk to her."

"She's on her break," Sam said after a moment to recoup after that little scare. "You can find her in the Mess Hall."

"Thank you," Vlad said politely. He paused right before opening the door and looked up at me. A questioning and suspicious frown crossed his features before he opened the door and left us alone again.

"Jeez, that was close," Sam breathed with a sigh of relief. "He looked like he was going to eat you alive when he saw those leech scars."

I winced as a memory from a nightmare and of Amanda's death flashed across my mind's eye as she said this. I rubbed my forehead to try and keep my emotions calm as tears threatened to well up. "Can you use a different expression next time?" I asked her wearily. "But thanks for that save. You're awesome."

She looked at me with concern all over her face. "You okay?" she asked me softly.

"Yeah, I'm good," I lied as I got up quickly. "I gotta go. Thanks for the medical help. And…and I like talking with you about all this…stuff."

She smiled back at me. "It's what friends do."

-Late That Night-

My eyes flittered open as I slowly woke up from a deep, dreamless sleep. Before I got my sluggish head together, all I noticed was that my body ached like mad, and the floor underneath me was hard and cold. It took another few, good seconds to realize that my hands were tied in front of me and that this wasn't my bed in Cabin 2.

Crap.

A pair of legs suddenly walked into my view. I looked up with my eyes squinted against the brightness of florescent lighting. After a short pause to refocus, there was no mistake as to who it was. It was Vlad.

Double crap.

"What the hell is going on here?" I hissed up at Vlad in fear and confusion. I was only a second into morphing into my ghost form when Vlad reached out with a device and shoved its sparking prongs into my stomach. I cried out in pain as I felt my ghost powers leave me and I was forced back into human mode. From that moment on, I knew things that night weren't going to go my way.

Vlad didn't waste time. He bent down, grabbed a good chunk of my hair, and pulled me to my feet. I winced as my head found a whole new world of agony. Who knew hair could be so freaking sensitive.

All in the matter of seconds I had taken in the room. But what I saw didn't make sense at first. I mean, I didn't expect to see this kind of room while attending a kids' camp. It was like a mini science lab with counters filled with mysterious and toxic liquids in beakers and flasks. A chalkboard stood off to one side of the small, box shaped room with complicated formulas scrawled out on its worn surface. But what stood out was a metal table in one corner that Vlad was yanking me to. It was for me!

"Let me go!" I screamed at Vlad as I twisted my way out of his hold. Too bad I didn't get away with any balance. My squirming, combined with limited arm movement because my hands were still tied together, left me falling to my butt in the middle of the room.

Panic and fear fueled my next move. Vlad turned around to grab me again. I brought my leg back and kicked the man right in the shin. He fell to his hands and knees with a cry of pain as I struggled back to my feet. I shoved a hand into my front pocket and brought out a small, portable ghost ray which Sam had smuggled in. I quickly aimed it at the fallen enemy and shot at him.

Vlad simply turned ghost and intangible. Frowning in annoyance, he surged forward before I could shoot again. He slammed a shoulder into my chest. While I was falling backwards, he grabbed the rope binding my wrists to keep me on my feet. He forced the weapon out of my hands and began to drag me back to the table without a single word.

"No! Let go!" I yelled at him fruitlessly as he easily forced me across the room. I gave a small yelp as he lifted me up and slammed me down on the table. He quickly untied my wrists then placed then above my head. A metal bar flashed out of the table and wrapped around my wrists, successfully pinning them to the cold, flat surface.

I watched in horror as the same type of metal bars came out of the table and strapped my ankles down. This was going south fast! One last bar wrapped itself around my stomach and pulled me tightly down. To put icing on that cake, it was buzzing with electricity. I could even see the tiny flashes of energy come off it when I looked over my chest.

"Relax, Daniel," Vlad told me, his voice monotone. "This will just be like all our other talks."

"Relax?" I screamed back at him. I think my voice cracked on that one too. I was scared out of my wits, which was becoming an everyday thing now with Vlad and his spooky camp. It wasn't everyday that I woke up in my arch enemy's lab and strapped to one of his operating tables for questions. My heart raced. I had to gasp for air. My eyes were wide with fear as the emotion seemed to be a chemical reaction that rushed throughout my veins.

Vlad stood over the table and me with a hard frown on his face. Running out of patience, he pressed a button on a keypad next to my head. Instantly, the belt around my stomach zapped to life, literally. A strong blast of electricity cut into my stomach and traveled from there to the rest of my body. The cry in my throat came out as a cough as I squeezed my eyes shut and rode out the pain.

"That was only a small test," Vlad told me soberly. "If you disobey me or talk back, I will not hesitate to press that button again. Do I make myself clear, boy?"

I cracked an eye open to look up at him. "Transparently," I croaked out with a wince. It felt like my insides had been fried. There was no way I wanted that to happen again. I set my mind to work on breathing right, to calm myself down. I needed to get my head together if I wanted to get through this present ordeal.

"Good," Vlad said. "Listen closely to me. That thing that just electrocuted you is a project I've been working on. Besides electrocuting people, as you just found out first hand, it is a lie detector. If you tell the truth, it does nothing. But if you lie, the same thing that just happened before will occur again."

"A sparking lie detector?" I asked in astonishment. "What did you make it for, terrorists who want to interrogate more effectively?"

Vlad reached for the button again. I quickly back peddled. "Hey! No! It was a joke, okay? It will be the last." I did _not_ want to get electrocuted like that again.

"It better be," Vlad muttered, his eyes narrowed dangerously at me. He paused before continuing. "I will ask you yes or no questions. Only give me a yes or a no. Any more than that, and I'll press the button. Here is a question for example; is your name Danny Phantom?"

"What kind of-," I stopped mid sentence when Vlad's hand reached out for the button. I gave up with a sigh before saying, "Yes."

"Good boy," Plasmius said as if congratulating a dog. I frowned as he said this and pulled against my metal binds. But it was useless. I was stuck there till Vlad said other wise. "Next question," Vlad went on. "Did you know I was the owner of this camp before you arrived?"

"No," I said truthfully. One of his eyebrows rose in surprise, but that was the only reaction I got out of him.

"Did Sam know I was owner before she came?" Vlad asked.

Before I thought better of it, I lied instinctively, which was stupid, I know. "No," I said. The results were instant. The zap was worse than the first, leaving me breathless when the few seconds of agony was over. Sweat began to make a layer on my forehead as I took in greedy breaths through winces. I was going to think twice about lying for the rest of my life after this nightmare.

"Are you and her working together against me at the moment?" Vlad asked.

I paused because I really hated to tell him all this. I gave a groan before answering, "Yes."

Plasmius shook his head with a smug smile on his lips. "So rebellious and stubborn," he said. "What has that idiot, Jack, been teaching you all these years?"

"Just get on with the dumb questions, fruit loop," I spat up at him. I had opened my mouth to shout some more, but Vlad's fingers beat me to it. Another strong zap racked my body, and with it took my anger. This one left me panting and staring up at the harsh rays of light blazing above me, waiting compliantly for my next question.

"Have you seen the thing you call 'the beast'?" Vlad asked.

"Yes."

"Has Joseph seen it?"

"Yes, we both saw it, together," I told him with a glare. "You were there that night."

"Is Joseph helping you and Sam, then?" Vlad asked. Great. I now had to bring poor Seph into this mess.

"Yes," I muttered.

"So was it Joseph who hacked into my computer the other day?" Vlad asked.

My eyes went wide with this question. I snapped my head around to look at my adversary with surprise written all over my face. How did he know? "Yes," I answered with a discouraged sigh.

"Did you write that email to your parents?"

"Yes," I said. "How did you find out about it? Seph and I covered our tracks."

"Oh, you two were quite sneaky," Plasmius answered, triumph flashing through his eyes. "But my security system caught the email when you sent it. I'm guessing Joseph didn't suspect that you would have to have a password to send emails. It didn't even reach your parents. It didn't even leave my computer."

"Crap," I whispered to myself as I closed my eyes and banged my head back against the table out of frustration. Our efforts to save this camp were getting us nowhere. If anything, I was just making matters worse at the moment.

"Yes, you explained your situation in a very simplistic view," Vlad said. "Your actions will have consequences. It might take me some time, but I think I can come up with a punishment that will fit."

"So this contraption I'm in doesn't count as punishment?" I yelled at him while yanking on my binds. I just wanted one minute alone with him with my powers. I wanted to beat him to a pulp, I was that mad at the man.

"I told you to relax," Vlad said as he placed his palm on my chest and shoved me back down on the table. My skin crawled at his very touch. He leaned down so that we were face to face. He noticed me recoil and asked hauntingly, "Do you think I have the capacity to kill you, Daniel?"

"Yes," I said quietly after a pause. Oh jeez, he wasn't thinking of killing me, was he? I had to fight the panic that swelled up after that thought. Vlad smiled wickedly at this reaction.

"Do you think I'd hesitate to kill you now?" he asked me then.

I was torn. I knew which answer he wanted from me, the one that would make me feel hopeless and defeated. I couldn't give it to him. I needed to keep my pride somehow, even if it hurt. "Yes," I told him audaciously and into his face. He watched with a frown as I got zapped again with another volt.

Vlad stood back up and placed his hands behind his back in a placid manner. He waited a moment for me to recover from my latest lie before asking, "Do you know Joseph's secret?"

Before I could ponder what Vlad meant by 'secret', my mind went to Seph's thieving secret. "Yes," I said. The second after I said this, I realized that Vlad probably didn't care about Seph and his wanton ways. That meant that Seph had another, deeper secret that I had no clue about. Somehow, I had bypassed the system. This was interesting.

"I guess I didn't give you enough credit," Vlad said, impressed with my answer. He rubbed his chin in thought. Obviously, he didn't expect me to know whatever Seph's secret was. "If you know his secret, then you must know who he works for," Vlad thought out loud. I tried to look nervous, which wasn't hard. I had to make it look like I didn't want Vlad to know this.

"Is he working for the Guys in White?" Vlad asked with a smirk. The proud fruit loop thought he had outsmarted me. This would have been fun and laughable if I wasn't strapped down to a freaking operating table.

"As in; spying for the Guys in White?" I asked, choosing my question and words wisely.

Vlad gave me a confused look before answering, "Yes."

I shrugged…or at least I tried. It's hard to do so when your arms are pinned above your head. Vlad's perplexed look deepened at this gesture. Either he didn't understand my answer or didn't know that my pathetic wiggle of my shoulders had been a shrug. I decided to make it more blatant for him. "I don't know," I said with a sheepish smile.

"No, wait," Vlad said, still confused. "You said yes to the secret que-." In mid sentence it dawned on him that I must have said yes to another secret of Seph's and had cheated the lie detector without fully realizing it myself. "You conniving snake!" Vlad growled down at me, his red eyes narrowing darkly as his anger swelled.

"Hey! I didn't know what was going on till you asked that Guys in White question, okay? Whose fault was that?" I was quick to retaliate. I didn't want to get shocked again. Too bad that was what Vlad had exactly in mind.

The man twisted a knob on the controllers by my head and slammed an angry fist down on the button despite my shout of protest. The volt that excruciatingly shot and ripped into my body made me arch my back and writhe in agony. My eyes were squeezed shut as I cringed back the pain. Tears rolled down the sides of my face. This was too much. I thought I was going to pass out.

Vlad watched silently as he tortured me for an extra few seconds before letting off the button. I fell back to the table gasping and choking on air. My muscles felt like they had been stretched beyond their limits. My heart fluttered with effort. But it was my stomach that ached and burned. It felt like those nightmares when the beast ate out my stomach. I pushed the horrifying memories away.

"Look at me," Vlad hissed into my ear. I didn't respond. I wanted so bad to pass out and be done with this. Mentally and physically, I had given up. I was done. But Vlad wasn't done with me just yet. He grabbed a handful of my perspiration laden hair and gave it a good yank. "Don't you dare pass out now, boy," Vlad said.

I opened my eyes to glare at my enemy. "What?" I forced my sore throat to say.

"Did you get those leech scars from a volleyball pit?" Vlad asked. I could tell from his pauses that he was thinking more on the way he worded his questions. He had already given me a boat load of information about Seph. The last thing he wanted was for me to find out more about his precious monster.

"No," I said wearily after a pause.

"I thought so," he muttered. "Your friend is very good liar. Did you get them at a swamp?"

"Yes."

"Did you hear voices when you were at the swamp?" This was a curious question.

"Yes." So I wasn't going insane and hearing voices. This made me feel somewhat better, if I could feel better in the situation I was currently in. I felt like death itself at the moment.

"But how did you find the location of it?" Vlad asked, tapping his chin in thought. His eyes widened as he got the answer. "Did you or Joseph steal one of my books?"

I sighed. "Yeah."

Plasmius nodded in understanding. "One last question and I will let you go, Daniel," he told me with a smile. "Do you or any of your friends understand this book you stole?"

"No," I answered with a relieved sigh. Finally, this torture would end. I watched as the man floated idly over to a table on the other side of the room to pick up something. My question as to what he was doing was answered when he lifted up a syringe and needle with a clear liquid in it. My sore muscles tensed at the sight.

"I'd like to say that you will only feel a pinch, but I hate to lie," Vlad said with a sardonic smile as he flew back across the room and to the table I was strapped to. "Hold still. This will only knock you out. I can't have you awake when I put you back into your cabin."

"Don't you have anything else?" I cried. I don't think I'm like Tucker, who faints at the sight of a hospital, but I was never a fan of shots as a kid. But at this point, I was with my friend. That honking needle looked freaking painful! I would have rather fainted.

"No," Vlad snapped down at me. He pulled up my shirt to reveal my bruised stomach and paused when he saw that I was totally freaking out. He was going to stick that thing in my stomach! "Relax," he told me. Why did he keep saying that? I was _NEVER_ going to relax with that needle in my sights!

"No, please, Vlad," I actually pleaded with the man. I struggled against my binds to stall for time. "Just put it into my arm or something. Be reasonable, okay?"

Vlad grinned wickedly at my erratic breathing, wide eyes, and plead for mercy. "You do know that this makes it more enjoyable on my part?" he asked me. I didn't answer. This was gonna hurt. He plunged the needle down, making me release a small cry of pain. I felt as the chemical in the syringe was shoved into my system and race throughout my body. Going to the doctors would never be the same.

Taking the needle out slowly, Vlad watched with bored interest as the chemicals took over my body. I could literally feel the unnatural liquid as it rushed through my veins and demanded control. The sides of my vision blurred and darkened as if I was passing out. The stuff worked fast, thankfully. All too soon I felt myself slip away into the comforting folds of darkness.

-Hours Later-

"Is he dead?"

"Well, he's not moving. He hasn't moved in hours!"

"OH MY GOSH! He's dead! The monster killed him!"

"Shut up, Steve! He's just sleeping! You're such a baby at times."

"Calm down all of you. Danny's only sleeping. See, his chest is moving up and down, so he's breathing."

"Can you kids give him some air? Why aren't these salt things working?"

Hey. I knew that voice. That was Sam's voice. The familiarity from out in the darkness brought me back to reality. Or maybe it was just the nauseating smell that was under my nose. Whatever it was, it got me to wake up and crack an eye open.

"Nope, their working," Seph said with a relieved grin. I opened both eyes and looked around to see that my whole cabin full of kids, Seph, and Sam were standing and hovering all around me on my bed. It was comforting and strange all at the same time. But, no matter how bizarre, I managed a small smile.

"He lives!" Tony screamed with happiness while putting his hands into the air. The other kids all cheered with him for the victory of waking me up, which I guessed was something of a challenge. I couldn't help but chuckle at their actions.

Seph grinned as he looked over his kid squad. He looked at his watch and winked at me. "Okay, boys," he said loudly so to catch all their attention, "There is a swimming pool waiting for us in five minutes. Danny's fine, so let's get on to more fun matters." The kids all cheered as they ran out of the cabin like the whirlwind they were. I didn't miss the smile Eric flashed me before he jumped out the door with Seph on his heels. He was a good kid. I liked that he cared so much for others.

"What was that all about?" I asked Sam with a grin. She didn't return the smile.

"You were passed out all day, Danny," she told me. The Goth girl sat down on my bed beside me and continued to explain. "Seph at first thought you just needed some rest, but then you never even showed up for lunch. By that time, the whole cabin was worried about you and got me. What happened? I was so worried."

"Ug," I muttered as I rested my head back against my soft pillow. "What was in that stuff Vlad put in me? Hopefully that was his idea of my punishment." My whole body ached. Every muscle felt like it was burning even if I wasn't using it. My stomach was a knot of pain. I wished they had just left me asleep.

"Vlad?" Sam asked. "He wanted to punish you for something?" Her violet eyes avoided mine as she muttered, "That would explain Jazz."

I froze in fear. Oh no. No, no, no. "What do you mean?" I asked her slowly, dreading the answer. This-this couldn't be happening.

"The beast," she said, trying to get it out without hurting me but finding no possible way, "it got your sister. It killed Jazz."

A/N: Wow. I forgot how bad cliffhangers could be till I made this one up. Sorry, dudes. Anywho, my computer is going extra slow, so I want to get this thing done quickly, and won't be able to respond to last update's reviews. You guys know the drill; I'll be back in two more weeks. See you guys then!


	10. Chapter 10 Tree Therapy

A/N:

A/N: Yes, the weather is warm, Rugby season is at its peak, and school is almost finally out. I think my depression is finally gone now that the season is changing. It's nice to be back in the normal mood instead of sulking around in the cold snow. Hm. If my life was a novel, this would be the time that the author would do something evil to me to slam me back into bad times. Authors like doing that to their characters, don't they? Enjoy the chapter, folks!

Disclaimer: Any Danny Phantom or CHERUB character is not mine. The rest is.

Chapter 10 Tree Therapy

I felt like I couldn't breathe. I fought through the spinning world and the warning pains in my sore muscles as I threw off my sleeping bag and jumped out of my bed. Sam was already standing, giving me a worried and concerned look as I ran past her and for the door to the cabin. Halfway there I transformed into ghost. The last thing I heard before blasting my way out of there was Sam's nervous cry of warning.

The camp grounds were a blur as I flew at break neck speed toward my sister's cabin. I had to see it myself, though I hated to see what I expected to find. The way there, I had to force back hot tears of fear of the already known conclusion.

I arrived inside Jazz's cabin a second later. Her kids were out at the pool, so the hot and stuffy lodge was empty except for beds, various clothing and personal objects, and the lifeless body of my sister strewn haphazardly on a cot. The sight of her delicate, pale form was like a kick to my gut. I literally couldn't breathe at first as I stared down at her limp body. I couldn't take this.

"Vlad!" I growled out in pure and righteous anger. This was his fault! This was my punishment for trying to save a bunch of innocent kids from the hungry and evil hands of a monster!

At that moment I wanted to kill him. And to be honest, I think I would have done just that if I had had the power to do so. My hate for the man was so hard to see through; it was difficult to decipher anything else but my loathing emotion. It pushed me right over the edge.

Somehow I was functional enough at the time to fly myself over to Vlad's cabin. I tore into the office, took out the camera with a well placed and over zealous punch, then came at the baffled man with a snarl of rage. I collided with the man, sending us both to the floor of the room. He quickly changed into his ghost form and managed to throw me off him.

In the process, I slammed into Vlad's thick, wooden desk. The force of Vlad's throw made me break the thing in half. Papers scattered across the room, sluggishly falling to the floor. I landed on my butt, rolled backwards with a wince, and violently crashed into the wall. Gasping for breaths, I struggled back to my feet while glaring daggers at the scowling ghost floating in front of me.

"I'll kill you!" I screamed at him before throwing myself into another flying tackle. But I was too blinded by my burning hatred for this man to think straight. The hatred was like a boiling lake of lava in me, erupting at just merely the sight of him. How could he kill her? How could any human be so cruel, so evil as to murder Jazz?

But I think what really made me so mad was the fact that I saw it coming and never even tried to stop it. He had given me warnings, millions of them, to back off. He even plainly threatened her life and others. Still, I ignored these for the greater good. I played hero without ever really realizing the devastating consequences of my honest actions. Vlad had given the order to kill Jazz, but it was solely me that motivated him. This had put a nauseating, churning pit in the bottom of my stomach. I'm surprised I hadn't thrown up by then.

Vlad easily stepped to the side as I flew wildly on by. He grabbed an ankle and used a lot of his strength to stop me in mid flight, bring me up over his head, and slam me hard against the carpeted floor. My head was the first thing to hit the ground. Stars exploded across my vision as I danced precariously on the border of darkness. To cope for me, my body changed back into human form despite my protests.

"You brought this upon yourself, boy," Vlad icily said down to me as he placed a booted foot on my heaving chest. His voice and stare was hard and stone cold. His red eyes were like steel piercing me. I couldn't take it.

"How could you?" I cried up at my enemy. Hot, salty tears started to roll down my face. "How could you kill her? How could you do that to me, dad, and mom?" By this time I was on my feet and was yelling into Vlad's cold, unmoving face. A sob racked my body before I could scream at him, "You-you've gone too far!"

"No, Daniel, you did," Vlad told me with harshness in his voice. "You crossed the line long ago. You've ignored my plethora of warnings. All your life, things have been too easy. I've even been nice and gentle towards you. But this time things are serious. I made that clear from the very beginning. It's about time you get punished. This will teach you to take responsibility for your actions and to know the power I have. When I tell you not to stick your nose in my business, I sure as hell mean it! _This_ is the price you pay for disobedience!"

"What else was I supposed to do?" I exploded with the fail of my arms. I was livid. He was shoving all my regretful and unwanted thoughts in my face then telling me I deserved the death of my own sister. "I get forced to come to this freaking spooky camp, see a girl get killed by a monster, and even have one of my own campers become one of these walking zombie people. Every day I see another kid become a victim! I see death everywhere! How do you expect me to act? You think I can just sit here and wait to be the next on this beast's dinner list?"

"That isn't my point," Vlad seethed into my face, making me back up a step in surprise. "You threw away my warnings. My only resort was to punish you. And if you disobey any more of my commands, Jazz won't be the last." The threat stunned me into a fearful silence. He saw this and added sharply, "Got that?"

I blinked. Seriously, that's all I could do. I couldn't believe that anyone could be as heartless as this man. It was a sick and sad thought that I just couldn't bear. Shaking my head, I turned back into ghost form and shot out of there, heading…anywhere but the camp.

I was done with the place.

The world was a massive blur of different shades of green from my wild plunge into the forest and the tears that ran from my eyes. I wanted out. I couldn't stand the sight of the victimized kids, the worried Sam who I knew was faithfully waiting for my return, the spying and deceiving Seph, and most of all the merciless eyes of Vlad Masters. I wanted to give up.

Too bad fate had already taken that option away from me.

After flying miles through the woods, phasing through tree after tree, I decided to angle upward and out of the swirl of confusion I was putting myself in. I didn't even see the Ghost Shield. Going full speed, I slammed into the boundaries head first. The impact was painful as the Shield reacted and shocked me into darkness. Passing out, I guess I turned back into human form.

A second or two later, I fought my way out of blackness to find myself plummeting toward the earth at an alarming rate. Some thicker branches from a tree slammed into my back and shoulders to lessen my fall, but I was going to get seriously hurt if I didn't do something fast. The tree's leaves sliced into my exposed skin. A second before I turned ghost to stop my fall, a large and sturdy branch caught me right in the stomach.

The air was forced out of me as I hung there suspended by this branch. Panic flooded every one of my senses as I fought for air that wouldn't come. Finally, a gasp succeeded. Choking and wheezing in deep breaths of air, I raised myself off the branch and sat there a few good yards above the ground. I hung onto the trunk of the tree to keep my balance.

And it was there that I totally lost it. Once the first sob came, I couldn't stop the rest of them. Every aching memory and feeling in me from the past week came flooding back. I let it all out. I didn't let the tears stop; I don't think I could even if I wanted to. I had so much pain and built up emotions that had to be released.

I cried for the deaths of the campers, for my scary and difficult predicament, for the fear of Sam and the rest of my friends here lives', and for the loss of my sister.

I don't know how long I sat there sobbing my heart out. It had to be at least an hour, though. But there was finally a moment when I knew the tears were done and I had to think again. I had to bring all those incoherent thoughts back into something tangible, something that could keep me going. I had to pull myself together now, or I was done for. I _had_ to survive.

So for another good part of an hour, I sat there and thought long and hard about my emotions, the camp, the beast, its victims, Seph and his involvement with the Guys in White, and Vlad Masters. Actually, it was the smartest thing I had done in a long time. I got a lot of good ideas and theories from it.

One, I figured out that Vlad had to have some control over his monster. How else could he make it kill Jazz? So he could command this thing to attack certain people. That was nice to know and avoid.

Two, maybe not all victims of this beast were fully dead. When I saw that sphere ghost of the girl the other day, I think that was a mistake on the beast's part. It asked me to save or help it. Did that mean that these dead people had a chance of being alive again? It was a good question. It was one I swore right then and there to figure out…even if I died trying. I owned it to Jazz and her lost life because of my actions.

Three, Seph wasn't here only for me. If he was working as a spy for the Guys in White, there was a chance he was also out to spy on Vlad, who had a ghost side as well. That would explain why he seemed so interested in the man and asked a lot of questions about him. Maybe he wasn't here for me at all and was just being my friend to get closer to Vlad. It was something to dwell on. But at this moment I wanted to give the kid some space. I didn't know if he knew I was Danny Phantom yet.

Four, Vlad had plans for his beast, serious fruit loop plans. He was taking over the camp with his dangerous creature night by night. He had control over his beast, which apparently had control over its devoured victims. Vlad also had control over his still living campers. He let them have little to no technology to call home. He prevented anyone from sending messages out of his camp. And most importantly and newly discovered, he had a Ghost Shield keeping any ghostly substance in and others out. Was it only for me? I didn't think so because I could easily turn human and walk out. It could be for his beast…or the beast's ghost victims from that creepy swamp.

Five, that swamp was important to both the beast and Vlad. I didn't know why exactly it meant so much to both of them, but I knew that the root of the problem lay in there. I needed to go back there and figure out what. The sooner, the better.

All in all, my time of thinking was good. It got me back on track and organized. I felt like with this new information, I could make something good of it. I was prepared to do whatever it took now to find out Vlad's evil plan and take both him and the beast down.

It was time to prove myself again. Was I just some stupid ghost boy that liked the praise a superhero gets? Or was I someone who truly cared for the souls of others and here to protect and serve? Smiling sadly to myself, I realized that I was fully ready for the challenge.

-Hour Later-

"Hey, can you get me some pain killers?" I asked an unaware Sam in the Infirmary Cabin. "I might need more than just two, just so you know," I added with a tired grin.

"Danny!" Sam gasped as she stood up from where she was restocking a shelf in the front counter. She didn't even have the patience to round the desk. She threw her body right over the table and wrapped her arms around my neck to force me into a hug.

Biting my lower lip to keep in my emotions, I wrapped my own arms around my friend. For a moment we stood there over the counter squeezing each other in a sad, heartrending embrace. It felt good to know that Sam cared so much about me. She was the best friend I could ever have.

Pulling away and quickly wiping a stray tear away from her eyes, Sam asked me softly, "You okay?"

I sighed deeply before answering, "Yeah, I think so."

The Goth girl smiled back at me. "Where have you been?" she asked after taking a quick look over my scratched and bruised body. "Boy do you smell like a car air freshener!"

I laughed at this. "I've been in the woods for hours," I told her truthfully. I looked down before saying slowly, "Just thinking…and getting some stuff out." When she didn't say anything, I looked up at her and into her violet eyes with as much intensity I could without frightening her and said, "This is hard for me to say, Sam, but I'm saving this camp even if it ends up with my death. I _need_ to save it from Vlad. He will not get away with the deaths of these campers and my sister, I swear."

"Don't think you're in this alone, Danny," Sam said with as much passion. "You can't do this all by yourself. I know you might not like this, but I'm prepared to do the same. I'm with you all the way and there is nothing you can do to stop me, hear me? Let me help you…please."

It was only then that I realized that I truly and utterly loved this girl. Sure, I had always thought about it and mulled it over, persistently contemplating the romantic thought. But with these words from her, I saw her bold and righteous spirit, her deep compassion, and beautiful commitment to me as a friend. The emotion caught me off guard to the point that I couldn't say anything for a moment.

"Good," I finally was able to muster, "'Cause I need you."

Hearing this, Sam broke out into a grin. I couldn't help but match her gorgeous smile. Somehow knowing that we could both still smile meant something to me. It meant we still had hope. We still had each other. It was all I needed then.

"You have a plan, then?" Sam asked me after both our emotions seemed to calm down a little. "I mean, Vlad is sure to be checking up on you more often now. I don't know about you, but I'd like to stay off the bad guy's radar."

"Like I said," I told her, "I've been thinking."

"Oh, sounds painful," Sam said teasingly.

"Cut it out," I tried to defend myself, "I'm a straight C student. That means I'm smart but lazy."

"Or stupid but active," Sam added.

"Point taken," I sighed. How come she always won our little banters like this?

"Oh, but go on," Sam said with a prideful grin, "I'm interested."

"We're going to do everything sneaky at night," I said. "Now, I know that it will be risky with that monster walking around at the same time, but Vlad will never be able to catch us. So while the sun is up, we will be perfect little campers. But we also need to make it believable towards Vlad, or he'll get suspicious otherwise. Maybe Seph and I should pull another prank on him."

"So what's our first move?" Sam asked. "What's the schedule for tonight?"

"Sleep," I said with a vigorous nod. "I'm dead freaking tired." Sam laughed at my answer. "But tomorrow night I'm going back to that swamp. Can you get me a lantern or flashlight? Also, a map and compass would be good. Maybe even a knife…." I trailed off at the end. With the beast around, I wanted to stay human. That foreboding feeling of turning ghost in front of that monster still sent a warning to my body. Sam somehow understood this.

"You want me to go with you?" she asked hopefully.

"I'd be better if you stay here," I said without looking up at her. "But you'd be a big help if you got all that stuff for me. Can you do that?"

"Of course," Sam said with a smile. I was glad she wasn't getting mad at me for wanting her to stay out of danger for now.

I smiled slyly at her before saying, "If it's a game of chess Vlad wants, then it's a game of chess he'll get. And it might be that I'm that pawn that gets to the other side of the board and brings back the queen. Who knows? We might even win this game."

-That Night-

It was the first nice dream I could remember. It was of Sam, Tucker, and I fishing at a purple pond. You know, this was dream world, so purple water made so much sense. Also, the three suns in the sky weren't out of the ordinary either. What really struck me was that Sam was fishing with us. But, again, dreams take away the usual shock effect. And at that point of sub consciousness, all I wanted was some small hiatus from my full time superhero job in wake mode.

Like I was saying, it was a nice dream. The weather was warm and perfect. The scenery was deep and fresh. My friends and I were laughing and talking, having fun together without it dealing with ghosts for once. I don't remember if we even caught a fish or not.

Abruptly, those good feelings came to a halt when the pond suddenly froze up and the air became deathly cold, as if the suns' power had been cut off. Standing up on the dock, I rubbed my arms to try and keep warm. Slowly, the dream was getting darker as if the world was dimming the lights.

I needed to wake up…fast.

Opening my eyes, I tried not to gasp as I seemed to slam into consciousness. My heart thumped wildly in my chest. Eyes wide with fear and anticipation, I silently sat up and looked madly around the pitch-black cabin. All my senses were going berserk. The hot rush of adrenaline crashed through my veins. Something was in here that shouldn't have been!

I froze in pure fear when spotting the glowing red eyes of the beast as it rose above the kid Tony's bed with a hiss of evil pleasure. Its' dripping jaws opened into a hideous smile as he hovered over its helplessly sleeping prey. There was a moment where all I could do was stare in shock and horror. Why was it here?

Then my brain seemed to get up to speed. Thankfully, it went into hyper drive. The adrenaline that had spiked my systems forced me to act. I flung myself off my bed, dove for Seph's side of the room, grabbed his heavy duty flashlight, and then threw myself recklessly at the beast.

"Get the hell off him!" I screamed as a form of battle cry.

The monster looked up at me right before it had nosed dived into the vulnerable Tony's stomach. I threw the handle of the flashlight over my head before jumping up and slugging the thing in the skull with my makeshift weapon. I landed in a crouch on the other side of the bed I had leapt over. The beast growled in anger as it was forced off the kid and to the dirty floor.

By this time the rest of the cabin was awake or at least getting there. Screams shot out all around as the kids saw the beast charge at me. The thing was so quick; I didn't even get the chance to defend myself with the flashlight. The beast slammed into my chest, front feet first, and brought us both down to the ground.

I hit the floor hard, losing Seph's flashlight in the process. Wincing because I was winded from having the monster fall on top of me, I tried to grab the weapon fruitlessly. A growl from the beast still sitting on my chest alerted me to the real problem at hand.

I looked up into the wicked eyes of the beast and almost became hypnotized in the terror that gripped my whole being. The thing seemed to purr in pure delight of my presence. Its' slimy, slug colored tongue lashed out of its fowl smelling mouth and pressed against my neck, slowly making a sticky trail of saliva up to my chin.

Breathing hard, I struggled to get the thing off me, but it was pretty heavy. It was bigger than when I had last seen it a week ago. Maybe it grew with each victim it consumed. Would I be its next meal?

Seph's attack came out of nowhere. With a loud battle yell, he appeared out of the dark cabin shadows and plunged a knife into the beast's left shoulder with full intentions to hurt. The monster gave a low, menacing growl in annoyance and lunged for Seph with the swipe of a clawed hand.

Seph easily avoided the assault with a short leap backwards. I watched in surprise and wonder as Seph then came back at the thing with a perfect roundhouse kick to its face. While doing this, he managed to pull his knife back out of the beast's shoulder. He did it so nicely; it was like watching a performed action sequence you'd see in a movie. James Bond anyone?

"Come on, you bastard," Seph taunted the beast. He was standing in a good fighting stance, on the balls of his feet and ready for any move the monster made. The knife in his hand was dripping with the black blood from the beast. Maybe the Guys in White taught all their kid spies' kung-fu.

I was still on the floor, looking like a dork. The kids in the cabin were screaming fearfully and crowding into a corner behind me as if the geek sitting on his butt before them was going to be their savior. Yeah right. With the way things were heading, not even Seph had that big of a chance of surviving.

Suddenly the beast moved. It sprung from its spot, rebounded off the wall of the cabin, and came at Seph with a growl of distaste. Seph smoothly ducked to dodge the flying attack. But the monster was one step ahead of the boy. It landed behind him, whipped around, and slashed at Seph's leg.

Letting out a sharp cry of pain, Seph stumbled backward to try and get away from the monster. In the darkness of the cabin, the blood flowing from Seph's wound was a thick, shiny brown. The kids all screamed some more when they saw their hero go down.

It was time for me to step up.

Eyes wide, heart pounding, and hands shaking, I searched for the flashlight I had dropped moments before. I soon found it and grabbed it in a white knuckle grip. Gritting my teeth in anticipation, I ran at the monster for another swing.

At the last second the monster sensed my fast approach. It jumped out of the way of my swing and slashed me across the back with a razor sharp claw. The wound stung as I hissed in pain. I could feel my blood trickle out of the opening and soak into the back of my shirt. But I couldn't focus on that now. The kids needed me. I turned around to face the monster again, but this time with a weary frown planted on my face.

Surprisingly, the thing grinned back at me. Somehow I could feel its enjoyment. Something about _me_ it loved. What was it about me? Why only me? Why did it only spare my life when already it had had two chances to end it so far? It hadn't waited a millisecond to kill Amanda and all the other people in my dreams. What made me special?

My ghost powers.

The scary thought made me pause in horror. It wanted me in ghost form before finishing me off. It made sense now why I had so much apprehension about turning ghost around the beast. Somehow my instincts had been warning me this whole time. It was a very good thing that I obeyed them. If not, I'd probably be dead by then.

But why would it want to kill me while I was ghost? That part didn't make much sense to me. But then again, this whole camp and the monster itself didn't exactly fit the logic bill either. I'd have to take this frustrating and dangerous mystery one step at a time. At least now I knew a motive of this thing. Now all I had to do was live.

The thing was like a cat playing with its toy with me. Slowly, we circled each other. Its blood red eyes narrowed on me, chilling me to the bone. Somehow I ignored the sensation and focused on the beast. I was practically useless as a human, but there was no way now that I would change into ghost form. But if the monster ever hinted to hurting the kids, I'd have no choice but to transform and save them. So I needed the attention of this thing on me.

Quicker than I expected, the beast ran at me. I threw myself out of the way. It skidded to a sudden stop, switched directions, and lunged for me again before I could retreat. To protect myself, I brought up an arm. Regretfully, the monster met its target. Its massive jaws sunk into the arm and latched on.

Because of the things' attack, I was off balance. Giving out an agonizing cry, I feel to my butt with the creature still connected by its teeth to my arm. I could feel each shark-like tooth slowly sink in deeper into my skin and muscles. By this time the adrenaline and my brain had locked out most of the pain. All I could do was stare into the deadly eyes of the enemy.

Good thing Seph had decided to rejoin the battle or I would have been monster meal. Fearlessly, he sliced his knife across the beast's long jaw line. Disturbed from its feast on my arm, the beast snapped back at Seph. The thing was tired of having the teen interrupt him this whole night and was ready to kill him for good now. I could tell by the very growl the creature uttered as it slinked over to my friend.

Now was my chance. Without thinking deeply about it so I wouldn't change my mind, I threw the flashlight in my other hand up and brought it down as hard as I could on the beast's head. The thing let out a cry and backed away from Seph and me to shake off the effects.

Both Seph and I regrouped in front of the boys all cowering in the corner. The slash on his leg was still bleeding. It had to be pretty deep and painful. But he pushed through as he positioned himself in front of the kids like I did.

"Shit," he swore under his breath, "Your arm, Fenton. It's real bad."

Panting, I said, "I'm good as long as the adrenaline keeps coming. Here it comes again. Ready?"

We were both out of breath and gasping for air in the blazing hot cabin. A cold sweat dripped down my back and stung the wound there. But we were prepared to stay there and protect these kids. Their hope for safety was keeping us going.

"Yeah," Seph answered my question. "Just wish I had a gun." He held up his bloody knife and readied himself for the beast's next attack like what I did with his flashlight. Things didn't look good at this point.

Then things changed.

Eric pushed his way through the crowd of bunched up boys and past Seph and I. Cold determination was set in his narrowed eyes. He didn't even glance at Seph or me as we looked down at him, dumbfounded by his boldness and courage.

"Enough," Eric said emotionlessly at the beast. The thing growled back, but it didn't take any step closer to us. "I rebuke you in _His_ name," Eric said firmly.

The response was immediate. The beast opened its blood stained jaws and gave the group a loathsome hiss. It then morphed into a gray smoke, zipped across the floor of the cabin, and retreated into the night under the door of the building. The absence was so sudden that it took a second or two for all of us in the room to realize that the thing was officially gone.

I stared down at the frowning and serious Eric in pure shock. This kid had just saved all our lives!

A/N: Oh, that last part was fun to write. Bloody action scenes are my favorite. And Eric is a curious one. How did he command the creature to leave? How come he has control over it? The questions will come, but I can't answer. In two week there will be another chapter. Maybe I'll put some cryptic answers in it for you readers. You guys have been awesome! Thanks for reading and see you guys in two weeks!


	11. Chapter 11 Coffee with Fruit Loops

A/N:

A/N: Freaking writer's block! HATE IT! All the sudden my imagination water fountain went from gushing to a pathetic trickle. The ending of this chapter suffered from it, but sometimes readers don't even notice. Oh well. I'm just glad I'm on time, unlike my other suffering fan fic. Enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own any Danny Phantom or CHERUB characters.

Chapter 11 Coffee with Fruit Loops

"W-what was that?" I stumbled on words to ask Eric.

The whole cabin was silent, waiting for the boy's answer. Eric stared at the door, in deep thought it looked. His face was hard and passive as he pondered his answer to us. I'd never seen a kid so intense like this. For some reason, at that very moment, Eric scared me. Like me, Vlad, and that monster, Eric wasn't normal.

Finally Eric sighed, coming out of his thoughtful mood. His brown eyes snapped up to look straight into mine. The stare took the breath out of me. He seemed to be looking right into my soul.

"Right now is not the time to answer," Eric said, producing a melancholy smile. "You two are really wounded. We got to get you guys to a nurse or something. We might even need to get you both to a hospital."

Suddenly the pain came rushing back. I almost passed out right then and there because of it. Seph was already sitting on the floor, wincing through the pain in his bleeding leg. I did the same, but it ended up more like falling to the floor. The one cut on my back throbbed. But it was my torn apart arm that was making me almost hyperventilate. I had to force myself to breath as my body suffered through the agony of torn skin, muscles, and nerves.

While looking at my open wound, I saw it begin to heal on its own. No kidding. It was like I was Wolverine from the X-men or something. I watched with open mouth as everything was put back together. The pain subsided to a dull ache. The blood vanished. It was like nothing had happened. My back wound felt nothing too now.

"No…way," I whispered in disbelief.

"Whoa," one of the kids, Steve, said from behind my shoulder. All the kids were bending down watching the healing process with astonished faces. Seph across from me was watching his own leg regenerate with a grim frown on his features.

We all jumped as the door to the cabin crashed open. I looked up over the side of a bunk bed to see some adult counselors come rushing in. They all wore worried looks on their faces as they attended to the boys, asking questions along the way. Most of the kids began to cry. I think it was because of a mix of fear and relief. I didn't blame them. They had all experienced something traumatic.

We were all ushered to the Mess Hall by the adults. Seph and I walked side-by-side the way there. For a long time we didn't say anything but watched our kids try and tell the counselors what had happened. No one believed them. It was useless.

"At least now we know what happened to Amanda," Seph said finally.

"Yeah, but at what price?" I asked emotionlessly. We'd almost all gotten killed by that thing. I wasn't in the mood to talk about our mystery to Seph the spy.

Seph seemed to understand. He gave me a concerned glance before picking up his pace and walking ahead. It pained me to see him leave like that, but I didn't want to take the chance with him. He was a cool guy and all, but our friendship wasn't worth my secret becoming public at this point.

We arrived at the Mess Hall a moment later. The kids, Seph, and I all sat down at a table. The kids were all jittery from the fright. Most of them looked pale and scared to death still. The adults got Seph and me to tell our story, but they still looked skeptical once we were done. There was no way they were ever going to believe a bunch of kids and their camp fire ghost stories.

The adults decided then to leave to ask Vlad if they should call the parents of the kids. By that time it was two in the morning. The kids were dead tired. So were I and Seph. The other teen was the first to fall asleep. Slowly but surely, the rest of the kids passed out around the table. I waited an hour after the adults left, but even I succumbed to uneventful sleep.

The sound of something being placed on the table woke me up some time later. I opened my eyes to see that a Happy Hills coffee cup was sitting right in front of my nose where my head was resting on the table. The lighting told me that the sun was just then rising. Red rays rudely cut through the glass windows around the Mess Hall's building. But what really woke me up was the man who was sitting at the end of the table. You guessed it. Vlad.

"Have some coffee," Vlad said flatly.

Cringing from the soreness, I lifted my head off the table and rubbed the back of my neck. I frowned at the cup of coffee then back at Vlad. "Was that an order?" I sneered.

Vlad sipped from his own cup, unperturbed by my spiteful comment. "No, Daniel," he said, "The gesture of making you a cup of coffee was only for show. Our little spy is watching from behind. He has positioned himself so as to not be heard but to be seen. We both can't do much with him there. Don't turn around."

Disobeying without second thought, I spun my head around to look at Seph. The boy was sitting on a table cross legged behind me, staring intently into the screen of his laptop as if reading something interesting. In his hands was a bowl of cereal.

"Yo!" I called over to my friend. Vlad stiffened behind me. I knew he was ready to strangle me by now, but I was having too much fun.

Seph quickly raised his eyes up over his computer screen to look at me and Vlad. He raised a questioning eyebrow. I guess he wasn't saying anything because he didn't want to disturb the slumbering kids still sitting all at the table.

"Pass the cereal box over," I said to Seph. The teen grabbed the colorful box and threw it at me without a word uttered or a second glance. I caught the box with one hand and turned back to Vlad while popping it open and digging into its sugary breakfast contents. I was starving suddenly. "So much better than coffee," I muttered audible enough for Vlad to hear.

"Still bitter, are we?" Vlad asked confidently. The blow stung. I actually flinched. Avoiding eye contact with the man, I tried to get the picture of Jazz's dead body out of my head.

"What do you want, Vlad?" I asked him with a glare.

"Oh, nothing special," he answered with a self-absorbed smile, "I just want to know who the beast was there for. Who was the original victim it was after?"

I grinned. "Explain," I said innocently.

"Don't play coy with me, boy," Vlad warned. Somehow we were both keeping our voices low enough so as not to be heard by Seph sitting close by.

"Well, I don't see myself strapped to an operating table with an electric lie detector hooked up to me, so I feel like I have plenty of room to be coy with you, Vlad," I told the man bluntly. "Maybe spy kid over there will be able to answer your question." That said, I shoved a hand down into the cereal box and munched on my breakfast.

"You're being awfully suspicious right now," Vlad snapped back. I paused in mid bite as I heard this and stared into the cereal box. "Are you giving me another reason to punish you?" Vlad continued without pity. "Know your place here, boy."

Staring at the wall, I leaned back in my chair with a sigh. The man wasn't letting up or giving me a chance. It was frustrating on my part because I'd have to tell him everything without being returned with a single thing. That irritated me.

"How fitting," I said after a long pause. I held up a piece of my cereal and said to my enemy, "That I'd be eating fruit loops while sitting next to the biggest one of all." Without skipping a beat, I flicked the piece into Vlad's coffee cup. The thing landed with a _plop_ that was returned with an impassive "Opps" from me.

The loathsome glare from Vlad was all I wanted at that point.

I got up casually while saying down to Vlad, "It was after Tony." Knowing the hard eyes of my adversary was watching my every move, I started to walk toward the door. "I'm taking a shower, Seph," I called over to my friend. "Take care of the kids. Have fun you two." I was then gone…or that was what it looked like.

The second I was out of the building and out of sight, I flashed into ghost form, turned invisible, and passed through the walls of the Mess Hall to spy on the interaction between the actual spy and enemy. I had a feeling that something interesting was brewing between these two. It just so happens that my instincts were right this time.

Vlad was still glaring at the door I had left through a moment before when I came back to observe the scene. He finally glanced over to Seph. A hint of an evil smile flickered across his features before he stood up from his seat and strolled over to the avidly typing teen sitting on the table next to him. Seph didn't even look up.

"No laptops are allowed on camp grounds, young man," Vlad said with his usual superior attitude showing through.

"You want it back, old man," Seph said without taking his eyes off his glowing screen, "Then come and take it out of my hands." I couldn't help but smile at Seph's cockiness. The boy's boldness never wavered.

"Oh, but I wouldn't want to disturb you from contacting the ones you work for," Vlad said smoothly. He paused for pretend thought before asking, "Who are they again? The Guys in White? I'm sure they're very interested in what you have gathered about me and my camp."

Floating only a few feet beside both of these guys, but still invisible, I looked over to Seph for his reaction to Vlad finding him out. Not surprisingly, the kid was calm under pressure. To any outsider he looked cool and collected. But I noticed the one blunder the teen made that gave him away. For a moment he took his eyes off the computer screen to look at Vlad. I could tell from that moment on that Seph was deeply frazzled.

"Who are the Guys in White?" Seph asked Vlad with a convincing laugh, "Some parody _Men In Black_ group?"

"I guess you don't _really_ belong to the Guys in White," Vlad said, not believing Seph for a second. "They are too dense to ever think of training a kid for spying purposes or nonetheless train you correctly. You see, Joseph, (if that's your real name), it was smarts that gave you away to me."

"I had most my schooling in England," Seph said with the impatient wave of his hand. "They are light years ahead of you Yankees."

"It was your knowledge of computers," Vlad said flatly. "You hacked into my system quite nicely."

"What the hell are you talking about, Masters?" Seph asked with a frustrated sigh. "Hacked into what computer? Why are you accusing me of doing such weird things?"

"No need to act oblivious with me, Joseph," Vlad told him with a knowing grin, "But if you want to waste time beating around the bush, go ahead. You already know by now that you can't send any information outside the camp. The Guys in White are such in desperate need of information on me that they're willing to harm one of their borrowed agents."

Seph still played the dumb act although he knew by now that Vlad had his number. He gave the man a confused look before asking loudly, "Who are the Guys in White? I have no clue what you're talking about!"

"How many days has it been since you lost contact with them?" Vlad continued relentlessly, "A week maybe? That's an awfully long time I'm sure in your book. You're a kid spy. Whoever really owns you, I'm sure tries to keep you in extreme safe conditions and makes contact with you each time you're on a mission. Is the stress frightening you yet?"

"A kid spy?" Seph asked with a shake of his head. "You've been watching too many cartoons."

Vlad suddenly shoved his face into Seph's, making the boy give a little gasp. "Even if the stress hadn't touched you before, I can see it has made its way through right now," Vlad whispered vehemently. All Seph could do was stare back, eyes wide in alarm. "I can see it all over your face, boy. All that I say is true. A monster is on the rampage and you have no way of stopping it. Keep your filthy nose out of my business and I might be able to spare your life. Do I make myself clear?"

It took a moment from Seph, but finally he mustered a shaky, "Yeah."

"Good," Vlad said. He stood back up with a triumphant smile and gave Seph some breathing room once again. The man then bent down, snapped Seph's laptop shut in one fluid motion, and took the thing right out of the boy's hands. "I'll be taking this back, thank you," Vlad said down to the stunned teen with an oily grin. He then walked out of the Mess Hall without a second glance.

Once the despicable guy was gone, I looked back to poor old Seph. The teen looked scared, confused, and shocked all at once. I'd never seen the guy so shook up before. He'd always been this determined, smooth guy that always knew what to do and to say to get out of tight spots. Seeing him this way now almost frightened me. What was he going to do?

The question was soon answered as Seph in his peak of emotions jumped off the table and sprinted out of the Mess Hall. I had to fly pretty quickly to keep with him as he ran all the way back to the cabin. The tranquil morning air did nothing to sooth the frantic mind of Seph. He didn't even stop his speedy pace once he got into the cabin. He grabbed his suitcase and started to shove random clothing and junk into it.

I hoped he wasn't thinking of leaving me, but that was exactly what was running through his brain at the time. All he knew was that he was found out and he needed to get out of there as soon as possible. I didn't blame him. He was like me from the day before.

"This can't be happening to me," Seph muttered to himself as he rushed to pack, "This can't be bloody happening!" All I could do was float there and watch my friend in hopes to comfort him in invisible mode.

Before he left the cabin he paused at the door, swore, and turned around. Raising an eyebrow in question, I watched him as he searched for a piece of paper and pencil. When he got them, he scribbled in his bad handwriting (like mine) _Sorry, Danny_. He placed the note on my bed and left without a second thought.

I flew above the teen as he ran down the empty and still gravel pathways to the front of the camp. My heart went out to him. I knew what he was feeling, and I also wanted to stop him. I wanted his strength to defeat Vlad. My struggle wouldn't be so bad if I had Seph as a friend by my side. But it wasn't my place to intervene. This was all his decision.

Too bad fate had already decided it for both of us.

_WHAM!_

Seph slammed face first into the invisible force field. He gave a shout of pain as he fell back onto his butt with a bloody nose. I stopped right away when I saw this. If he had ran into some kind of shield like I had, then I was bound to do the same like before. I didn't want to experience that one again.

"No freaking way!" Seph muttered as he staggered back to his feet. He pounded onto the force field a few good, violent times while shouting curses in pure rage and fear. Each time his fist hit, the invisible shield rippled slightly as if it was clear water in a pond.

"No," Seph said with despair this time in his voice. The strong resolve had been zapped out of him with this new, impossible obstacle. He stared out at the outside world he was unable to traverse with tears welling up in his eyes.

I watched in sad silence. This was disturbing for me. Vlad's unseen ghost shield wasn't just for ghosts but for humans too. Vlad had locked us into his evil and sick plans since the beginning. He had sealed the tomb to all our fates, which was death. He was keeping all of us in here whether we wanted to be or not. It was a terrifying thought.

Distraught, Seph let his duffle bag drop to the dirt road and collapsed onto it. He was taking this being trapped news the best he could, but I knew that he was going to fall apart if I didn't do anything. Also, I had a plan forming in my head that would keep him going as a spy but on my side. It was crazy enough to work. So I flew behind a big pine tree, transformed back into human form, and walked out to consult my fellow sufferer.

Seph noticed my presence before I had even taken two steps away from the tree. He refused to look up at me as he asked in something close to a growl, "How long have you been watching me, Fenton?"

Fighting the awkwardness of the situation, I shoved my hands into my pockets as I silently walked closer to my friend. I stopped a yard or so in front of Seph and let out a sigh. "Since the Mess Hall," I finally said somberly.

Seph flinched.

"Sorry, dude," I said.

"It's not your bloody fault," Seph grumbled back. He swore again when trying to wipe away the trickle of blood coming out of his busted nose with the back of his hand. "It was mine," he continued, his tone angry. "I went on my own without any orders. If I had only stayed on the sidelines and hadn't joined you and Sam, I'd have been off the radar. The dumb arse here is me."

"So," I said after a long pause, "Was our friendship part of your spy game too?"

Seph gave a bitter laugh when hearing this. He tried again fruitlessly to stop the blood flow from his nose to buy himself some time. I waited patiently for his answer without any expression. Seph was a pretty good liar. But now that he was under so much pressure emotionally, I saw his cracks. I'd be able to tell right now if he was smooth-talking me or not. Seph knew this too.

"Yeah," Seph said truthfully.

"I thought so," I said with a disappointed sigh.

"Don't give me that crap," Seph hissed up at me. I was kind of surprised by his hostility. "You don't know what's going on here, Fenton," he continued in the same tone. "My friendship to you, even if it was real or not, was my order. So stop whining about the stupid thing and suck it up. So I freaking lied to you. It's not like you've never met someone like me before. Get over it."

"I never said I was upset about it," I muttered. Seph looked down with a sniff as if trying to cast me away with this distancing action. Maybe his recent little rant to me had really been addressed to himself. Maybe he wanted himself to get over his relationship with me. This thought made me sympathize with Seph even more.

"We're stuck in this camp, aren't we?" I stated rather than asked while looking out beyond the camp grounds. The sweet taste of freedom was so close. It was literally an arm width away from us. But if I held up my arm, I'd be prevented from passing through. It was a hard concept to sit still with.

Seph didn't answer.

"Well," I said with a frustrated sigh, "I've never seen a ghost shield like this one. Usually they're green and misty, very easy to point out. But of course Vlad would put up one of his tricky clear ones. What I'm trying to figure out is how he got it to block out humans too. That's new."

By now Seph was staring up at me with perplexed astonishment written all over his face. It was priceless to see him try to get over the fact that I knew more about what was going on than he did. I let out a prideful smirk as I looked down at him. I didn't let the fact that his eyes were red from tears go unnoticed. Somehow he had been crying without me seeing.

The poor guy had saw himself stuck in the worse case scenario, dead end mission. In his opinion, he was either going to die by the hands of Vlad or by the monster. And even if he did get out alive from Camp Happy Hills, the people he was under would never let him go on another mission. He was found out by Vlad and me. His life as kid spy was over.

"Let's face it, Seph (if that's your real name)," I said down to him with an air of knowingness, "You can be a sucky kid counselor. I mean, c'mon! You hate kids! Vlad was going to find out your real intentions sooner or later. But, hey, even if you did fake it, you were a pretty good friend to me and Sam. And if I have to visit the CIA and sign a paper to stay silent for the rest of my life for you, I'm pretty sure I'd do so."

Seph gave a small chuckle when hearing this. I don't know why. I think I got the organization he was under wrong and he felt it funny somehow. "Where are you going with this, Danny?" he asked with the puzzled shake of his head. "And where the hell did you pick up that information on the…shield thingy or whatever you called it that is keeping us all in? How come you know so much about Vlad?"

"You see, those are the kind of questions I'd love to ask you about your spy job," I said. "And since we both know some thing or two that we'd like to keep secret, I say let's make a deal to help each other out."

"Deal?" Seph asked. He raised an eyebrow in questioning interest. Gone in his blue eyes were the doubt and fear. The bad ass determination was back. The light to those eyes had been returned.

"We both want to take Vlad down. Maybe for different reasons, but in the end who cares," I said. "I have all the information on that fruit loop to fill a couple filing cabinets. You have spy training and skills coming out of the wazo. If we don't ask questions and just put what we have together, we might have a chance to do something."

"The wazo?" Seph asked with the tilt of his head.

"Yeah," I said with a smile flickering across my features. "You with me or not, dude?" This was the moment of truth. I had either played too many games of Candy Land and wasn't fit to continue this game of chess, or I had played my cards just right.

"You know me," he said with his trademark inane grin, "I can't refuse a good offer like that. Besides, what else am I going to do now that I'm stuck here with no contact with those stupid Guys in White? Screw them and hell yes to your brilliant offer, I say!"

I let out a relieved breath. "Good," I said with a nervous laugh, "'Cause I was taking a bit of a chance there." He gave a laugh, glad to be back on good terms with me and had a hope of a future with his spy status. I let out a hand to help him to his feet while saying, "Let's get you to Sam. That nose of yours is kinda turning purple."

"Jeez, yeah," he said as he wiped away more blood. He paused before saying, "You know, I'd tell you my real name, Danny, but then I'd have to kill you." We both laughed as we headed to the Infirmary Cabin with Seph's heavy duffle bag in tow.

A/N: Yay Seph (which isn't his real name) is truly on board the ghost boat with Danny now! I'm just glad the filler chapter is finished and I get to move onto more horror and freaky scenes. I got a lot planned for poor old ghost boy. For some reason I just love torturing the kid. But thanks everyone for your reviews and support! You guys are awesome! See all of ya'll in two weeks!


	12. Chapter 12 A Stone's Dark Past

A/N: Whew! This was a long, good chapter! I loved writing it, besides the part that I only had this weekend to do so. My teachers are stuffing a months worth of work down our throats because they just realized they have about two weeks until us seniors graduate. Yay homework. Note the sarcasm. Anyways, this chapter is awesome and I don't want to waste any more of your time. Read and enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own any Danny Phantom or CHERUB characters.

Chapter 12 A Stone's Dark Past

It was like clockwork. Waiting patiently on my back in the surrounding darkness of my cabin, I could almost literally count the seconds after midnight when Tony began to snore. The noise reverberated throughout the room as loud as a freight train. Thankfully by now the rest of the kids had gotten used to the disturbingly loud sound at this time of night and slumbered on as if Tony's snoring was a background noise to their dreams.

Smiling slightly, I threw the covers off me to reveal that I was fully dressed and ready for my night trek to the swamp. Don't get any odd ideas that I was excited or anything along those lines. Truthfully, I was scared out of my mind of what I might find or what might find me. But I was confident that whatever was in that swamp was a good chunk of the chain links that connected to Vlad's big scheme with his monster. I _had_ to go back to the swamp.

I blindly felt for the flashlight and pocketknife that Sam and given to me the other day while Seph and I was there to clean up Seph's busted nose. We had told her what was going on and how we were going to team up, but only under the conditions of no personal questions. Sam liked the idea because it did not mean Seph or anybody else would figure out my ghost secret.

With my flashlight in hand and knife in my front pocket, I backed out of the cabin as quietly as I could. I was only a few steps away from the cabin when I heard the door close softly behind me. Alarmed by my pursuer, I spun around with a gasp.

"Eric?" I hissed out in a whisper, "What the heck are you doing? Get back in the cabin and go to bed!"

"Are you going back to the swamp?" Eric asked, ignoring my question and command completely.

"This has nothing to do with you," I shot back. "Go back inside. Do _not_ follow me."

"You are ready to listen to me, but why don't you?" Eric asked. His voice was curious with a hint of sadness in his tone.

"I don't know what you are talking about," I retorted with a little more meanness in my voice than necessary. I just wanted this kid to leave me alone and be safe in the cabin. I wasn't about to let him come with me on this dangerous mission. I hadn't even told Seph what I was doing because of this. Eric was no exception.

"Please, Danny, just hear me out," Eric said. "Your very soul is in danger." I assumed that he was scared that I would bump into the monster that had attacked just the other night. It was natural for him to be frightened for me. But no warning from this kid was going to change my mind. There were bigger things going on here.

"I'm not going to stand here and argue with you, Eric," I said with a tired sigh. "Go back into the cabin. We'll talk in the morning about this, okay?"

"Don't do this, please," Eric pleaded with me. "At least let me go with you."

"No," I said with authority. Jeez, didn't this kid know how to take no for an answer? By now I was annoyed. I pointed back at the cabin with an index finger and said seriously to him, "Go back into the cabin. Do not follow me."

Eric looked like he was at a crossroads and didn't know which way to turn. Finally he said in a steady voice to me, "If things go badly, Danny, don't give up. Trust your instincts. Sometimes they know better than you do."

"Nothing bad is going to happen," I said, rolling my eyes at how overdramatic the kid was making this, "But does this mean you're going to finally obey me?"

"Yes," Eric said with a defeated sigh. Silently, he opened the door to the cabin and snuck back in. Before doing so he gave me one last glance with his deep brown eyes. I couldn't help but shiver under his stare. Those eyes held an unknown knowledge. What was this kid?

Throwing the thoughts of Eric out of my head, I began my journey to the swamp. It didn't take long for me to exit the camp grounds that weren't shown brightly with flood light lamp posts. When that happened, I turned on the flashlight to show me the lonely dirt pathway that would take me to my desired destination.

The way there was dark and scary by all means. The night air chilled my bare skin, making goose bumps appear up and down my arms. The frogs and crickets chirped and sung loudly in the dark beyond my little flashlight circle of brightness. I felt like my light was intruding into the darkness pressing around me and if I didn't have it that I'd be doomed to the unknown wonders of the night. My imagination was freaking me out.

It wasn't till I had turned off the trail that the scary bar went from medium to beyond high. Instead of dirt pathway, I had nothing but tall grass and tree roots. Many times I stumbled on one of these roots, cursing my stupid clumsiness under my breath each time. I hoped the whole time that the monster wasn't out there now or I'd be doomed.

I wasn't far from that deduction.

I felt it way before I saw it. Freezing in fear and shock, I was smart enough to turn off my flashlight. Acting without much time to think about it, I hurried over to a thick tree by my side and hid behind it just as the beast came walking up a hill. My nerves were set on edge as I watched its red eyes scan the ground before it and walk on. Because it was behind the steep hill that led down to the swamp, it hadn't seen my beam of light from the flashlight. It was headed for the camp then. There would be another victim tonight.

My heart was slamming hard in my chest and sweat trickled down the small of my back as I waited till the beast had passed me by and moved on. When I thought that it was gone and wouldn't hear me, I left my hiding spot and started to continue on my way down to the mysteriously creepy swamp.

To see my way through the pitch-black darkness, I clicked on my flashlight again, thinking the beast was long gone by now. The second my comforting light came on I saw sitting in front of me was the beast, white teeth grinning at me and sinister red eyes staring into my horror filled wide ones.

It sprung off the ground with speed unknown to humans or any other animal and landed on me with a sharp growl of pleasure. With a shout of alarm, I fell backwards with the thing still on me. I went with the momentum of the fall, pulled my feet under the beast's chest as my back rolled on the ground, and shoved the evil thing off me in one fluid movement. It soared over my head as I rolled to my feet and fled into the woods in a frantic panic.

Sprinting as fast as I could with trees as deadly obstacles around me, I could only think of fleeing the beast chasing close behind me. I didn't even think to try and get back to the path that would take me back to the camp grounds. I don't think it would have mattered anyways. The only reason why I made it two steps was because the thing wanted to play with its new trapped toy.

The sounds of night seemed to fad away as I ran. All I heard was my ragged breathing and my wild footfalls. Trees blasted into my vision that consisted of the dim light of my flashlight that jiggled and jostled around from my hard running. I didn't dare look behind me to see if the monster was following. I knew it was somewhere out there.

Screaming, I saw the beast spring out from the shadows from in front of me at the last possible second. I skidded to a stop and ducked low to the ground to avoid getting whacked by the thing. It barely missed my head as it flew right on over me. Swearing from my desperation in my thoughts and movements, I took off in another direction into the thick of trees. I needed to get out of there.

From out of the perpetual darkness, the beast attacked me again. This time I wasn't as lucky as the first. It caught me in the shoulder, forcing me to drop my flashlight as I spun out of control and into a tree. The side of my head bashed against the rough bark, throwing my vision into an explosion of colors. I landed on my stomach in a complete daze. All I remember of that moment was how I distantly noticed how beautiful the grass blades in front of my nose looked at night when my flashlight's blaze was shown upon their green leaves. I stayed in that foggy state of mind for too long of a time.

In a rush, my thoughts came flooding back and my senses returned. I couldn't remember how I got there or where was I. Something sticky and awful smelling was constantly being pressed against my pounding and miserable head. I let out a pitiful moan of pain and winced at just the noise.

Memories crashed into my brain of the beast and my fall. At this, I stirred from my stiff and aching position on my stomach. Something that had been placed on my back reacted to my shifting. Weight was applied to my back, forcing me to keep myself down on the ground.

The delighted growl from the beast invaded my ears. Things started to connect in my head. The thing touching and keeping me there was the beast! Panicking, I tried to pick myself up and get away. The second I made the move, whatever had been pressing against my wounded head lifted away and sharp as needle teeth brushed against my exposed neck.

I froze in mid movement, frightened that the beast would finish me off then and there. But it wasn't there to eat me. It would have done that long before if that was its desire. No, it was waiting for my other side to come out before considering me as its snack. So slowly I lowered myself back to the ground, complying with the creature's wants. Maybe I could come up with a plan of escape.

_Snap_!

The beast suddenly released its jaws from its position around my neck at this sound. Surprised by this noise, I looked up from my weary situation. What I saw made my stomach drop in fear. It was Vlad Masters.

"You don't take my warnings well, boy," Vlad said solemnly down at me. I was so shocked by his appearance and how the monster on top of me obeyed him like a trained dog that I couldn't say anything.

Vlad kneeled down while pulling out the same handcuffs from before when he tied me to that toilet the second day I was there. I complied as he grabbed both my wrists and clicked the cuffs to them tight behind my back. He snapped his fingers again and the beast rushed into the black forest outside the small circle of light my dropped flashlight still shown. I saw its red eyes watch me from its station there. It wanted me so badly.

Silently, Vlad grabbed a handful of hair on the back of my head and pulled me up to my knees. Still dizzy from my head wound that protested at any movement at all, I almost dropped back down to the earth. But Vlad kept me still by seizing my chin with one hand to keep me in place. With critical eyes, he examined me within a few seconds.

Turning my head one way, Vlad caught something that seemed to interest him. He took his fingers off my chin to touch the sticky wet spot on my head. To my disgust and horror, I saw that on his retracting fingers was a wad of the beast's saliva combined with my blood from the wound there.

"That's too gro-," I began but was cut off with another snap of Vlad's quick fingers. The jaws of the beast swiftly chomped down less than an inch away my face. I didn't even see the thing move, it was that fast. All I could do was cringe and wait for the worst…that didn't come.

"If you speak one word, Daniel, my next order to the beast will be to bite that head of yours right off," Vlad said coldly.

I opened my eyes and stared down at the ground, dumbfounded by the fact that I was still alive at this point. How could things get so bad so quickly? Only an hour before I had things all under control and plotted out. Now my life was in the cruel and heartless hands of Vlad and his pet monster.

"Look at you," Vlad said with a short laugh. "You're scared out of your wits. Are you really that terrified of my beast, Daniel?" My only answer was to look up at the man helplessly.

"Oh well," Vlad said. Shrugging he continued, "The real problem here is figuring out why my beast didn't eat you, because he most surely could. You can feel it too, right? That longing. There is a strong want for you coming off it. But why…" He faded off in thought. I wasn't about to help him.

Vlad wasn't that slow. He got it in only the matter of seconds. I knew the exact time too. I saw it in his eyes. They narrowed on me as things began to click and fit together in his head. He seemed to ponder the circumstances and draw a conclusion. At this, he broke out into an elated evil grin and laughed.

"What irony," he chuckled into my frightened face, "That you and your ghost powers was what the beast wanted all this time! I should have seen this one coming, you know." I said nothing. Even if I wanted to, I don't think I could have. I was too terrified thinking about what this man was going to do with me.

Vlad stared down at me for another moment, planning out his next devious move in the scheme of things. He decided on something by grabbing the front of my dirty shirt and pulling me easily with one hand to my shaky feet. I gave a small gasp when he phased his hand through my chest, grasped the chain of my cuffs behind my back, and brought the whole thing with my hands through my body so that my hands were now in front.

Smiling, Vlad noticed my reaction and observed out loud, "You are all wound up, Daniel. Like I said before, relax." I thought the joke was nasty on his part and yanked my cuffs out of his hand and took a step away from the man. "You sure you want to make a run for it, boy?" Vlad asked me before snapping his fingers.

The beast gave a low, menacing growl from right behind me. With a shout of fright, I jumped away from the thing out of pure reaction. It followed me, still growling and snapping its large, sharp jaws. This thing looked like it was going to eat me!

Without looking as to where I was going, I bumped right into Vlad. He wrapped a strong arm around my waist and held me there as his beast slowly walked toward me. There was a smirk on his lips as he seemed to dangle me out as if food for his monster.

"Call it off, Vlad!" I shouted at my captor. The monster was only a few feet away now and Vlad wasn't letting me go. I tried to keep the beast back by striking out at it with a foot. In its frenzy, it snapped at my shoe and sunk its teeth into my foot. The second after this, Vlad commanded it to leave with a snap of his fingers. I tried not to cry out in pain as my sneaker leaked a trickle of blood.

"I should have let it take off your whole foot for talking again," Vlad told me as he let me go. I dropped back to the ground, hissing in pain from my foot. Breathing hard, I stared down at my foot, not daring to touch it any time soon. "I'm sure you learned your lesson," Vlad was saying. "But I do like to take precautions. Hold still."

Before I could comprehend disobeying my adversary, something cold and metallic was pressed against the back of my neck. With a click, the collar around my neck was in place. I grabbed at the thick circle of metal now attached to me and uselessly tried to pull it off with a few distressed yanks.

I choked as Vlad grabbed the back of the metal ring and pulled me back to my feet. He let go once I was standing again. Coughing from the near strangle, I rubbed my now sore neck and tried to ignore the persistent throb of agony going on with my foot and not to mention my head.

So far my fabulous night of getting answers out of the swamp was miserably disappointing. Vlad was the one getting the answers and I was the one putting in all the effort. And what was I getting for all my hard work? Crap was what I was getting. And I was getting dump trucks full of it by the second.

"That device now around your neck," Vlad told me after a pause between us, "Was designed just like your idiot father's Specter Reflector Belt. It negates your powers for the time being. I wouldn't try any kind of ghost powers with it on. Besides it having more a shock if you do use some type of ghost power, another thing that makes it different from the belt is the fact that it won't come off with a key. Only on my command will it do so. Also, it has a tracking device on it, so I can monitor wherever you are."

As he told me this, I avoided making eye contact with him out of fear of panicking and freaking out. I brushed my fingertips over the cool metal that was there on my neck. It was a chilling reminder of whose hands my life was in. The thought put a sick pit in the bottom of my churning stomach.

"Now," Vlad was concluding, "If you ever do break the metal, the C4 explosive in there will go off, leaving nothing behind." At this I looked up at him with wide eyes that clearly showed my surprise of this horrific and deadly fact. Vlad smiled at this and asked, "So you were listening? And here I thought you were zoning out like young adults usually do at your age. Well aren't you special."

Knowing I'd get a limb chomped off by the beast if I said anything, I mouthed the words fruit loop back at Vlad with a smirk. I might have been beaten by the guy, but I couldn't let him get away with low comments about me like that.

"Not that special," Vlad muttered with a snap of his fingers. I spun around, expecting another attack from the beast. It came from behind me and ran right into my legs going full speed. With a yelp, I fell backwards because of no balance from my bound wrists. My head hit the ground first, giving me an instant black out.

-Hours Later-

I don't know how long I was out, but waking up after that one was hard on my part. One, it was painful. And two, I didn't want to be faced with what ever horrors Vlad had next planned for me.

My head pounded away immediately in a massive migraine the second I came to. Thankfully my foot was healed, probably because the monster wasn't around now. That was good news. But I wasn't about to jump for joy. My whole body felt raw, as if I ran a few miles nonstop. Even my eyelids felt sore. That's when you know your body is at its aching peak.

"Ug," I muttered groggily while opening my eyes. Darkness surrounded me. I couldn't even see my bound hands I waved in front of my face. Painfully, I struggled to my cuffed hands and knees. My weary muscles made me shake uncontrollably. Disoriented and faint, I felt my stomach heave. A deep feeling of hopelessness overwhelmed me as I threw up on the floor in front of me.

"That would be from your concussion," Vlad's voice pierced through the darkness. I looked over my shoulder and toward the bright light that had entered this mysterious room that I was in. He stood at the doorway with a flickering torch held in one hand. It was then that I could take in the room.

The walls were all craggy dirt and stone, as if I was underground, which I probably was. It was a small room, no bigger than a walk in closet. In one corner was a puddle of black water. A leak in the ceiling dripped a droplet of water every few seconds. Also from the ceiling was a hanging chain with a hook at the end. Its giant, black shadow from Vlad's fiery torch played ominously against the far wall I was kneeling next to.

"Where am I?" I whispered in wonder…and let's not leave out fear. I was close to understanding why people wet their pants when scared.

"You are underground in a caved in mining tunnel," Vlad explained as he strode in confidently. "Newspapers say it was an earthquake that destroyed the mine, but that is far from the truth. What they found did worse damage than any natural disaster could."

Vlad walked right up to me, bent down, and yanked me up to my feet by grabbing onto the chain of my handcuffs. As he forced me to the center of the room where the hook dangled, he continued his story to me.

"In the days of the Alchemists, scientists were constantly trying to push the laws God had set upon the earth. They tried to turn other metals into gold and many other things that are strictly against nature. One subject in particular they strived to achieve, although it was dangerous and lead to many deaths."

Now he lifted me by the cuffs off my feet. He then let go of the chain and let me fall. I gave a gasp as the chain looped around the hook dangling from the ceiling and suspended me there. I tried to feel the dirt floor with my feet, and only on my tiptoes could I touch the ground. Vlad noticed this right away, and with a smirk, lightly placed a hand on my chest and gave me a gentle push.

Off balance, still dizzy, and with my wrists cutting into the metal cuffs, I was forced to swing back and forth. Vlad circled me now and went on, knowing that his only audience was listening with a grim look upon his face.

"They tried to create lapis philosophorum," Vlad said to me.

"L-lapis phi-," I tried to get out in confusion.

"Oh, please, child," Vlad said with the roll of his eyes. "Don't skewer the Latin. You might know the English name for it. The Philosopher Stone."

"Stone?" I asked. "Like in that book Seph stole?"

"Good boy, you put two and two together," Vlad sardonically exalted me and my pathetic efforts to understand what the heck he was saying. "But don't interrupt me. Just listen. This highly concerns you." I frowned at him, but I let the man go on. This was his story anyways.

"The stone was suspected to create life," Vlad told me. "It was ultimate power! Human beings creating life by their own means. But what the Alchemists didn't understand was that human bodies are nothing without a soul, and only God can make those. They didn't realize that the magic they used on the stone made it seek out the soul it needed to mold into its own and make it its own. Before they knew it, the stone had morphed into something they could barely control. It killed bodies and stole their souls, all the time searching.

"Desperate now to undo what they had done, an alchemist created a container for this stone or the beast his ancestors had wantonly made. Well, it was successful and kept the beast in its primal form of a black stone. Over generations, the container was passed on down the family line. One man knew the understood power that the stone held and didn't trust anyone else to release or control it, so he hid it. He hid it deep in this mine years before anyone started to dig."

"Why are you telling me all this, Vlad?" I asked in confusion. "It all seems like cliché villain to me, giving me your diabolical plan of destruction and crap."

Vlad grabbed my chin with a glowing ectoplasm hand. I gasped in pain as the collar still around my neck activated by Vlad's touch and gave me an electric zap. Vlad watched me with a satisfied sneer before taking his hand away.

"I want you to know this because I want you to know the true dark power of my beast," Vlad told me. "When those miners found the container and opened it years later, the sheer built up power in the container exploded out of the mine, making it collapse in many areas and killing half the miners. Standing in its place now is that swamp. But the creator of the container was smart. He made it so the beast couldn't travel far from its box. Only someone who knows the Latin words to bind it to him and becomes its master has the power to release it from its hold on the container. That is exactly what I did.

"And I intend to fulfill what those incompetent Alchemists were too scared to achieve," Vlad continued with dark intensity. "I've been searching for that soul my beast desires so much. Now that I've found it in you, all I have to do is ready you for the ritual."

"Ritual?" I asked nervously.

"Correct," Vlad said, "The ritual is where you turn ghost and the beast eats your soul. It then becomes more powerful than you or even I can ever imagine. And behind it will be its master, me. But first it has to eat a quantity of other souls, and I have to memorize the incantation. And while the beast kills the rest of the camp, you will stay here and ponder your near future."

"No! Leave the other campers out of this!" I pleaded. "You have what you want. Leave them alone!"

"Its no use, Daniel," Vlad said, unfazed, "The camp I had created was made for this purpose. In a few hours your trapped friends are all going to be killed, their souls ripped from their dead bodies. Then it will be the time where you will be tied down and sacrificed to my beast. The more fear you feel, the wilder the beast will become."

Tears welled up in my eyes as he said this. All I could do was picture Sam and Seph being killed and eaten by this savage beast. Pictures of their deaths flashed through my head along with memories of past attacks from the monster. All my effort seemed to be for nothing. I had tried so hard to save this camp, and now it ended up I would be the reason they would all die. It was too much to take.

And most of all, although it might sound selfish…I didn't want to die. I didn't want it to end here, tied up and helpless to what fate had given me. I had such a big future in front of me. I had a life to live. I didn't want to die!

"Ah," Vlad said softly when noticing my wet eyes, "It's finally sunk in. You've finally realized today is the day you die." Cringing, I couldn't keep them in any longer. The tears rolled down my face as if admitting my defeat. Almost sympathetically, Vlad lightly brought my chin up with a finger so that our eyes met. "It's been fun, Daniel," he said emotionlessly, "But at some point two adversaries have to say goodbye."

He then let me go, paused in thought, and then walked away with his torch in hand. With every regressing faint footfall I heard, the light dimmed more and more. When I could hear and see no more of the man, I let out my first sob.

I couldn't help but release the morbid thought of being buried alive.

A/N: I left it on a very dark note, didn't I? Poor Danny. I do tend to torture the boy. And I'm beginning to be creeped out by the way I portray Vlad. Jeez, I make him so freaking evil! As usual, I'll see you awesome readers in two weeks. Oh my, by then I'll be graduating. So exciting! See you guys then!


	13. Chapter 13 The Godsend

A/N: Whew! Such a long week. My last full day of school was last Friday! I'm FINALLY free! All I have to do is pass my English final and I don't ever have to cross the halls of high school ever again. Such a good feeling. Well, here's my chapter. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own any Danny Phantom or CHERUB characters.

Chapter 13 The Godsend

I had given up.

Simple as that. The second Vlad had left me there in the oppressing darkness, it seemed like the fight and the will to go on had been ripped away from me. I felt like a dead leaf of Fall waiting for the final winds to blow me off my hold on the tree called life. All I could do was wait, wait for death.

For hours I stayed that way, lonely and defeated in my heart and soul. Even my body had given up. I was too sore to try and get off the hook or struggle in my handcuff binds that dug into my wrists that bled freely now. All I did was keep my tip toes on the ground so I could put some pressure off my wrists and stare down with tear laden eyes.

The guilt was eating me up. Everything was my fault. If I hadn't stuck my nose into Vlad's business, Jazz would be still be alive. If I hadn't made Sam and Tucker sit out on ghost hunts, I wouldn't have fought so much ghosts and given my parents a reason for a vacation. If I hadn't come here, I wouldn't have been found by the beast. If I hadn't been here for the beast, the camp wouldn't be getting eaten all right now. The thought of their innocent deaths plagued my guilt till the subject was numb in my mind.

What could I do? I was stuck in a mine that no one knew about with a GPS collar around my neck that would zap me if I even pondered a ghostly thought. Everyone was asleep or getting eaten by the monster by now. No one was there to save them and no one was there to save me. I was useless as a human. All I could do was give up, accept defeat and wait for death.

In some small way it was relieving. I didn't have to care about anything for some hours. For once in my life I could give up on the fight. Don't get me wrong, I was scared to die and didn't want to. The will to live is strong, but right now I had no strength left for it.

"_Don't give up."_

The sentence flowed through my head so suddenly it surprised me. Where had that come from? It took me a moment to remember. My concussion didn't help with the speed factor for my brain.

Eric had said that to me before I had left for the swamp which felt like freaking ages ago. Why had he said that? Why had that come to mind now when I was in the process of giving up? Had Eric known this was going to happen? Possibly, he did believe that I was in danger, but I had pushed it aside as fear for me bumping into the beast while out. Maybe he knew that I'd get caught. If that was so, then he knew more than what he was letting on.

Wait, if he knew that much and about the beast, did that mean that there was a chance that he'd come looking for me despite my order for him to stay in the cabin? Knowing the kid, he wouldn't stay put for long. He had a caring heart. He respected my wishes, but he cared for me. If he knew I'd be in trouble, he'd go out of his way to help me.

Hope. It was all I needed. For a fleeting second hope flittered through my weak heart. New tears came to my eyes as something returned to me. The will to live had come back. This time I was going to grab ahold of it with white knuckles. There was no way I was giving up now.

But what else had Eric said to me before we had parted? There was something else important. I racked my brain for the answer. Any kind of solution would be nice. A moment passed before I got it. Something about trusting my instincts.

Darn cryptic kid! What the heck was that supposed to mean? How was instinct going to help me out of here now? But I had to calm down and think about this. What exactly was instinct? Instinct was like obvious vibes or thoughts you get that just kind of come to you, so what was coming to me now.

Escape. If Eric couldn't fine me, I needed to go find him. How? I had no strength to lift my entire body up and over the hook I was dangling from. Well, if I could break the handcuff chain, I'd be free too, but how was that ever going to happen? I was useless human Danny Fenton. Not exactly Superman.

It came to me all in a rush. I couldn't believe that I had totally forgotten about it this whole time. Before leaving the cabin, I had a flashlight and also a pocketknife. Besides a knife, a pocketknife has a file. It was perfect.

The pocketknife was still in my front pocket. It was a pretty big one, so it was easy to feel that it was still there. I couldn't believe Vlad had left it. How stupid of him to do that. Maybe he thought I didn't propose any threat once I was here in this horrific situation. I'd make him regret that prideful logic.

My only problem was getting to that knife. I couldn't just pull it out with my hands. I'd have to bring my body up so I'd pull it out with my teeth. My body pumping with life from this new revelation and hope, I set my mind to this stunt. It was going to be hard and painful, but I was determined to get free. I owned it to myself, to Jazz, and to those campers. Danny the superhero was back in business!

I gritted my teeth together and wrapped my fingers around the chain of the cuffs to prepare for the pull. I'd have to do this in one try. My body was in no shape at the moment to do this more than once. To mentally prepare myself, I tried picturing myself on one of those kid swing sets where some of the kids would do flips on those dangling rings. I'd done that a million times when I was six. With the right momentum my body could do it with these cuffs.

I counted to three in my head then pushed my toes off the ground and leaned my body backwards like I'd done so many times as a kid. My head spun from the sudden shift. My concussion was not liking the physical activity and so were my sore arms that had been hanging there for hours. The muscles burned as I held my entire body up in the air.

Pulling up my legs, I was gasping from the pain. My arms shook uncontrollably from the strain. My head was no where near to being clear. But I couldn't care. I could do this. I had to do this.

With one last struggle, I lunged my head forward and toward my curled up legs. Eyes squeezed shut to get through the flash of pain, I opened my mouth and chomped down on the edge of the pocketknife now sticking out of my jean pocket. I was careful not to bite down on it too hard because it could slip from my grasp and I'd be done.

Slowly, I brought the knife out of the pocket, enduring the pain whatever way I could. At last, when I knew for sure I had the thing secured in my teeth, I let my legs drop down to the ground and let my body rest of my tip toes.

My heavy panting was the sound of triumph that filled the black room. For a few moments I stayed that way, letting my body have a bit of a rest before my next trial, which would be to get the knife to my hands so I could begin filing.

Visions of my butch gym teacher barking at me for my pitiful tries at pushups and pull ups flashed through my head, and I almost laughed at the irony of it. I really should have worked out more in PE, but this situation had never occurred to me at the time. Now I just wished to see that weird lady again and her humiliating gym class one more time.

It was time to get moving. I pushed off my toes once again and gripped the chains of the cuffs to pull my body up. Its crazy what adrenaline can do to someone. It felt like I shot up to my hands with one easy pull. Quickly, I let go of one hand and grabbed the knife out of my mouth. I then let go and fell back down to my toes, greedily taking in ragged breaths.

I had done it. This time I did let myself give something of a smile. But I wasn't out of the woods yet. I still had to cut through the chains.

The file popped right out after I felt for the right section. I brushed my fingers across the coarse surface to make sure it was the file because I was practically blind in the blackness of the mine. I didn't waste time and went right away to rubbing the file against a part in the chain.

After a long time, my fingers felt raw from gripping the pocketknife and pushing it back and forth billions of times. My wrists were burning from them chaffing from all the movement and rubbing of the cuffs. But I knew that I was getting somewhere. I knew that at any second I'd be free. The thought of that freedom kept me going despite the pain.

My passion and anger grew with each chip I took away from the chains keeping me there. My rage for the heatless man who had put me in this position raged on. He was the one who commanded the stone, letting it destroy and rampage. He even built the camp designed to be the beast's dinning grounds.

Vlad Masters had thought that I had given up. I was as good as dead in his eyes. He had the audacity to believe that I had been pushed out of the picture. He thought that he had reached into my very soul and had wrapped his cold hands around my heart and manipulated it to stop working.

That would be the biggest mistake he would ever make. Who did he think he was? Did he really believe that I would kill over and let him destroy this camp full of innocent people? He didn't have a clue of who I was or what I was capable of.

"I'm...not...finished...yet!" I hissed as I scraped the file over the chains the last few times with my final bit of strength.

The chain to the cuffs keeping me up abruptly snapped. I feel back down to my feet but with no balance. With a gasp of alarm, I pinwheeled my arms as I feel backwards into darkness. My back slammed first into the rough dirt ground then my head banged down despite my tries to keep it protected.

A blast of colors exploded across my vision. I cried out in pain as it felt like my brain had been attacked by a sledge hammer. All I could do was curl up into a ball on the cold floor of the empty room and hold my head, gasping for breaths through the pounding of my head.

For a few minutes I stayed that way, nursing my hurt brain back to sane health. Finally, I was able to sit up in the pitch-black blanket of darkness that had seemed to envelope me. I had to beat down a wave of nausea, but I didn't succeed. Feeling a pang of loneliness, I vomited a second time that day. Yeah, it was pretty pathetic.

It was time to get out of there. I had fought this hard to get this far. People needed me. I couldn't let some concussion get in my way. So, with shaky legs, I slowly picked up my dropped knife, returned it to my pocket, and shuffled lethargically into the darkness with hands in front of me to feel my way out of the room and from there the mine.

I'll say this much, I didn't feel much like a competent superhero as I tried to walk along the hallways of the mine. My head was a nightmare of pain, giving me grief with every forced step. I stuck to the walls, using only my sense of touch to guide me. I was no where near in the condition I needed to be in to save this camp. Traversing the mine shafts at that time, I felt and looked worthless and beaten.

I was exploring the mine for only about a half an hour when I saw a light coming up around a corner in the shafts. Someone was coming. I didn't know who. I suspected it to be Vlad. Who else could it be?

What was I going to do? If Vlad saw me, I'd be captured again and go all the way back to where I started. There was no way that I could ever stand that. I had to do something, so I struggled to the corner and pressed my back against the craggy rock wall. I snapped out the pocketknife, watching the cool blade's reflection turn gold in the soft lamplight that was coming up around the bend. I was ready for this.

With a wild battle yell, I flung myself around the corner and swiped at my adversary with my knife. I managed to do no damage because the person there reacted before I could do so. He grabbed my wrist with the hand holding the knife and pushed it cleanly away from his body. Then with a sharp yell, he used his other hand's palm to shove into my exposed chest. He then spun sideways while bringing up a leg. With another harsh cry, he kicked me in the stomach, drove the air right out of me, and sent me to my butt in one fluid motion.

"What the hell? Fenton?" Seph screamed once he realized with horror that the butt he had just kicked had belonged to me. I was more focused on getting some air back into my lungs and not passing out to care that anyone was there to help me.

"Danny! Oh my gosh, Danny! It _is_ you!" Sam said with both fear and relief in her voice. I sat dumbfounded as she came rushing forward and kneeled down beside me. I remember the look of concern and worry on her face and embedded in her eyes.

"You didn't kill him, did you?" the voice of Eric asked Seph as he pushed his way past the stunned teen to see me. I looked up at hearing him and made eye contact with the mysterious boy. A faint smile crossed Eric's face when seeing me.

"Jeez, Danny, what the hell happened to you?" Seph asked while looking me up and down.

Coughing, I asked in a croak, "How did you guys know to come find me?"

"Eric and Seph just showed up at my cabin a few hours ago and told me that you were in trouble," Sam answered.

"Eric woke me up at the dead of night and said the same thing and that we needed to go get Sam," Seph said. "I guess he wasn't too far off. You look like crap."

"Thanks," I said with an ironic smile. "That's better than I feel."

This whole time Sam was checking me out like she was some nurse. She winced when seeing my cut and bleeding wrists that still had the metal cuffs around them. Scanning her eyes over my weakened and bruised body with the lantern she held up, she took in my state in agonizing silence. Only when she got to my head, she couldn't keep quiet.

"Danny! You have a huge gash in your head!" she said loudly.

"Yeah, and a pretty bad concussion," I said. "I've already thrown up enough times to know how serious it is."

"You shouldn't even be walking," Sam scolded.

"I don't care," I snapped back. Pushing her off me, I tried to struggle fruitlessly to my feet while ranting, "I got to get out of this stupid mine. I got to stop Vlad, save the camp. I'm not going to let a migraine stop me." As if to seal the coffin, I dry heaved once before throwing up again with everyone watching me.

"We're going no where with you in this pathetic condition," Seph muttered. He still stood there with his arms crossed in front of his chest and a scowl on his face. "I'd be easier to just leave you here, unless you want permanent brain damage."

"I agree with Seph," Sam said from my side. She knew how much I wanted to fight, but even she understood how critical my condition was in.

"I can help," Eric said, pushing his way past Seph to kneel down in front of me. I gave him a confused, incredulous look, but let the kid do whatever he felt like doing. He placed his palm on my forehead and closed his eyes. I did the same, wondering what the heck the kid was trying to do, but somehow it felt right.

Gradually, the palm he had on my forehead got warmer. I didn't say or mention it 'cause it kind of felt good. The pain in my head slowly ebbed away to a dull throb. I felt energy return to my body. Whatever Eric was doing to me, it was working. Miraculously, the pain vanished...and Eric pulled his palm away.

I opened my eyes a moment later. "Whoa," I said quietly. My face broke out into a small grin as said to Eric, "Can you do that again?"

Eric gave a laugh at my reaction. "Feel better?" he asked.

I easily got to my feet. My muscles were slightly sore, but it was a type of good sore, as if I did some work. I tapped my head lightly with a forefinger and was thrilled to get the results. No spinning worlds or fuzzy vision. I could work with this.

"I'm not peachy," I answered Eric's concern question, "So what do I call that? Peary?"

"What the hell did you just do, kid?" Seph asked Eric in wonder. Sam got to her feet beside me and held the same perplexed expression on her face as Seph's. I almost jumped when she wrapped a shaking hand around my arm and hung onto me as if for protection. She was scared, but she was trying to hide it.

"Yeah, you just whispered something and you both started to glow," Sam said from my side to Eric. "It was creepy," Sam added with a nervous laugh. I was glowing? I guess Eric's healing method involved that. I wouldn't have known. I kind of conked out the whole time.

Eric didn't react to this news. He took in Seph's and Sam's accusations with an understanding expression on his features. I wondered what he was thinking. I got my answer sooner than I expected.

The boy gave a deep sigh before saying boldly to all three of us, "I believe you are all ready. It is time for me to reveal myself. I am an angel sent on a mission to this camp as a human boy to help you three find and destroy the Philosopher's Stone."

The mine shaft was silent after this. The three of us stared blankly at Eric, expressionless. I don't know what was going through the others' heads, but I didn't know what to think. Was this kid pulling our chains? Was this just one _really_ bad joke? If so, I wasn't laughing.

Seph was. He let out a whoop of laughter and bent over holding his sides. Sam and I gave each other sideways glances. We didn't know how to react. Eric watched Seph patiently, not getting mad or angry at the mocking teen laughing in his face.

"Oh man, I'm surrounded by crackpots," Seph said with a final sigh. "What is this, let's-make-James-go-insane-day, or something?"

"Who's James?" I asked.

Seph looked up at me in surprise when I said this. He hastily dodged the question by answering in a snarl, "My freaking cousin! Who asked you, Fenton?"

"Hey! Back off, Seph!" Sam stood up for me. "Just calm down, okay? Just because things are kind of crazy, we can't just freak out on each other."

This seemed to mellow Seph out. He frowned as he took a step back from me. He was smart enough to understand that arguing and fighting with each other wouldn't solve all our problems or get us anywhere. But he was still ticked off for slipping up with that name.

"Well put," I whispered to Sam once seeing Seph back away. I then adverted my attention down to the Eric kid. I fixed him a serious look and asked him, "What kind of thing are you pulling here, Eric? We're in no mood for jokes."

Eric nodded, understanding what I was saying right away. "I'm sorry if this all seems so far fetched, but I'm telling you guys the truth. I am an angel. I'm completely fine if you don't believe me there, but what I'm concerned about is destroying that stone. Its more powerful than any of you can think of."

"Yeah, the angel crap I'm gonna ignore," Seph said with the roll of his eyes. "But what is with this stone? Are you guys really talking about that alchemist myth?"

"It's no myth," I told Seph. "The alchemists made it, but it turned into that beast thing that has been killing people."

"No, it does not kill the body," Eric corrected me. "It only forces the souls out of the victims' bodies and overtakes the body with its own."

"But it doesn't have a soul...yet," I said.

"Correct," Eric said after a pause. "He takes part of the person's soul and uses it to control the body. But how did you know that it doesn't have one yet? I haven't told you anything."

"And don't tell me that you've suddenly learned the language of that book on the stone I stole from Vlad's precious library," Seph said with a wry grin. Eric shot him an interested look.

"What book?" Eric asked with hope filling his eyes. "You don't mean the _actual_ book written about the stone?"

"It looks genuine," Seph said casually. "When Danny and I hacked into Master's computer in his office, I stole it because some dust on the spine had been brushed away. The others all looked unused. Because that book had less dust, I just thought that Vlad used it recently and would help with my spying investigation."

Eric's face brightened with a smile at this news. "I knew He had plans for you, but you're amazing in person!" Eric said to Seph with a laugh.

"I try my best," Seph muttered with a prideful smile. Sam couldn't suppress an eye roll that I caught with a grin. Some things never change with Seph.

"Do you have the book with you right now?" I asked hopefully.

"No. Why?" Seph demanded to know. He had seen the grave look on my face when I asked this.

"Because Vlad needs that book for a final incantation so he can seal someone's soul permanently with the beast's," I told them critically. "And the soul that Vlad needs is mine."

A/N: Sorry if this chapter came out a bit late. I was busy reading the 9th book of the Pendragon series all this week. It was a beastly 500 and something pages, but so freaking good! Its my favorite book series of all times. Well, I'm done rambling. I'm going to give myself something of a challenge and update next weekend. I'll be writing two different chapters at once, but school is over and I don't have a job, so I need to take advantage of my freedom and write. See you guys then!


	14. Chapter 14 I'm Too Young For This

A/N: Another fun chapter to write. With school over, permanently, I've had so much time to write. For the first time in months, I was able to sit down today and write for like three hours straight. It was heaven. Anyways, hope you guys like the chapter. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own any Danny Phantom characters or ones from CHERUB.

Chapter 14 I'm Too Young For This

Gasping, I woke up from a nightmare I didn't remember. There was a layer of cold sweat on my back, and my heart slamming hard against my chest. For a moment I thought that I was waking up in that room in the mine and I was still strung up on that hook, waiting for my death. I took in the dark and gloomy hallway I was in now, confused.

"Danny, you're okay," Sam's reassuring voice told me from my side in a soft but concerned tone. "You fell asleep as soon as Seph and Eric went back to the camp for the book and the tools to get that collar off you."

Hearing her seemed to calm me down. As she said this, I leaned my head back against the craggy rock wall of the mine tunnel we were sitting in. I reached out with my hand for hers and she let me take it with a sad smile.

"You okay?" she asked me.

"No," I answered truthfully. I paused before saying quietly, "I seriously thought I was going to die. You know how scary that was, to know that you were going to die? To know that you'd never see your family or friends again? To lose...everything?"

"I'm sorry," Sam whispered. She scooted closer to me and rested her head on my shoulder. She was scared, but she was holding it together so well. She was so strong. I needed some of that strength.

Tears came to my eyes before I admitted, "Maybe I'm too young for this."

Sam didn't say anything at first. She squeezed my hand that was in hers, but she didn't speak a word as she thought about what to say or how to react. Finally, she asked, "Why do you say that?"

"I...I'm only fourteen years old, Sam," I said. "And already I've seen death, people getting killed, you and Tucker almost being murdered by various ghosts, and almost died myself numerous times. Today I almost died again, and I seriously didn't know if I was going to see you or anyone else again. I've been through all that and I'm only a Freshman in High School. Its just...wrong. Maybe I'm too young to be Danny Phantom."

Sam sighed after hearing this. After a moment of thought she asked, "So what age is it right to be Danny Phantom?"

I looked down at her. At the same time she took her head off my shoulder to look me in the eyes. We were both dead serious about this subject. She of all people knew my feelings about being a ghost superhero. She knew how much I didn't like it...and how much I loved it.

"Danny," she said firmly, "The world needs you, no matter what age you are."

"But what if some time in the future I can't take the pressure?" I said, my voice cracking. "What if some day I break down and fail? Today I gave up! I gave up, Sam. I didn't want to save the camp, you guys, or even myself anymore. Don't you get that?" I paused as tears threatened to escape my eyes. Quietly, I said, "I gave up."

"Then how did you get out?" Sam asked.

"I remembered that Eric knew where I was going and that there was hope he'd help me, so I tried to break free with the pocketknife you gave me," I explained.

She laughed while pushing some tears out of her eyes. "Then you didn't really give up," she said. I was too stunned by her words to say anything on my own. "I know you, Danny," she said. "You got tired of fighting, but you never gave up on us. You'd _never_ give up."

"How can you say that?" I asked weakly. "You don't know that."

Sam gently took my other hand in hers. I watched her with wonder and interest. In any other situation like this with her, I know I would be blushing profusely. But somehow this felt natural. Sam and I had grown up together. We had endured everything with each other. She was one of my best friends. As we held hands, I felt like the bond between us was strengthening.

"I know that you'd never give up because you're here with me now," Sam told me. Her voice wavering with the passion behind those simple words.

She was right. She was right this whole time. She had been with me, cheering and helping me on through every up and down of my entire life. And I believe I had done the same to hers as well. I didn't want to lose her again. I didn't ever want to give up, because that would mean giving up on Sam.

In my passion, I lightly took her head in my hands. Slowly, to make sure she wasn't giving me any sign of protest, I brought her close to me. We hesitated, afraid to commit for a brief moment as our breaths brushed gently against each other. Then we took the plunge, our lips coming close...

Only for us to pull away real quick when hearing the startling shouts of Seph and Eric calling for us from down the tunnel. In our embarrassment, we looked away from each other with cheeks turning red. Why couldn't Seph and Eric had taken just one more minute?

"You guys won't believe what's going on down at the camp," Seph said as he and Eric came running around the corner. I struggled to my feet then helped the still blushing Sam up with an outstretched hand. She gave me a shy little smile when making eye contact with me.

"Why are you both red?" Eric asked curiously when noticing our faces in the bright light of all four flashlights we carried now. This seemed to make Sam and I redder and speechless. What would the angel say if he found out we were about to kiss? This was awkward.

"Leave 'em alone, dude," Seph said with a knowing, sly grin. Oh joy. Could this situation get any worse? Sam and I returned his grin with uncomfortable laughs. Seph let us go, I'm glad to say. But I think he destroyed any chance of Sam and I kissing for a long time.

"Where's the book?" I asked Seph once I got the nerve to talk. "I thought you said you hid it really well so Vlad couldn't find it."

"I did," Seph said, sounding annoyed, "But Masters has that beast of his prowling the camp ground. The whole camp is dead. Eric and I were lucky just to get to the tool shed next to the Mess Hall without being detected. We thought it better to go back and get the GPS disabled on your collar before returning for the book."

"It seems like Vlad is trying to find it," Eric said. "You must have hid it really well."

Seph smiled evilly. "Of course I did," he said. "When you're starving in basic training, you find all kinds of ways to hide food from Mr. Large."

"Basic training?" Sam asked. "Is that like boot camp for you kid spies?"

"You could say that," Seph said with a laugh. "Just in boot camp you get to eat at least once a day and you get some hours of sleep every night."

"Oh," Sam and I said in union. Note to self: don't become teen spy. It might suck.

"As the saying goes, 'once you pass basic training, everything is easy'," Seph said. "Or something like that."

"So did it train you for this kind of situation?" Sam asked.

"We don't train for urban legend attacks," Seph informed her. "Who do you think I work for? The Guys In White?"

"I thought you did," I said with confusion.

"No, they are borrowing me," Seph said. "And they're doing one hell of a job of keeping me safe. I should have stayed at the summer house with Kerry." At this thought, he grew silent. He almost looked homesick. Can a spy get homesick?

Eric was the one to break the silence. "Well," he said with a hopeful smile, "We better disable that GPS system in that collar of yours, Danny. You really think you'll be able to do it?" he asked Seph.

"This is right up my alley," Seph said, snapping out of the depressed mood. "The only tricky part will be getting the collar open without blowing ourselves up."

"You sure you want to do this?" Sam asked me nervously.

To traverse the camp grounds without Vlad knowing where I was, I couldn't have the GPS giving out signals of every movement I made. With Seph's experience with technology as kid spy, he said he could disable it for me with the tools he and Eric got from the tool shed. But then there was that C4 explosive in there that could kill us all. I had decided to take the risky chance and let Seph poke and prod in the collar, but now it looked a bit scary.

"Not really," I answered Sam's question, "But I'm dead anyways if I don't get this thing off my neck. Maybe Seph and figure out how to fix it. Its worth a try."

"Then lets get to work, Fenton," Seph said with confidence. He lifted up the small, rusty toolbox and I swallowed hard. Man, I was crazy, wasn't I?

He sat me down and he stood over me to access the collar from behind. He was smart to never tell me what he was doing or let me see what was going on. He worked slowly and silently. Eric and Sam tried talking quietly to me to distract my thoughts from drifting to the sever situation at hand. Seph ignored everyone as he worked.

I don't know how long I sat there, waiting to explode, but I'd say it took about twenty to thirty minutes for the teen to finish. Seph was pretty quick. Again, I was glad and terribly thankful to have the guy there with me. Where would we all be without the dude?

"The GPS is gone," Seph announced suddenly. He clicked the piece of collar he had taken off back into place. How he figured out how to open it, I have no clue. "Also, I changed some things with the C4. If you ever do manage to yank the thing off you, you have five seconds before the explosive goes off."

"You did all that in such little time?" Sam asked in amazement.

"I told you, basic training makes everything else seem easy," Seph said with a laugh. "I had to have to do stuff like that, but more complicated, in like ten minutes. Just this time it was real, so I wanted to make sure we didn't die."

"Good call," I commented. Quickly, I got to my feet to discuss the plan I had formed while sitting there. "We have to work fast now," I told the group. "Vlad might come back to check up on me soon. He's too paranoid to let me alone. So we need to get out of this mine before he finds us here."

The others nodded in agreement. Briskly, we started to find our ways out. I was dying to get out of the dark and foreboding surroundings, but I controlled my want of fresh air by relaying my plan to the others as we walked along.

"Although this beast is all mystical and stuff, I still feel that it has some ghost properties," I said. "Maybe some of our ghost gadgets will hurt it or at least defend ourselves from it."

"Ghost weapons will work against it," Eric piped up. "When the alchemists made the stone, they fused some ghost matter with it."

"So do you still have Fenton's parents' ghost gadgets with you, Sam?" Seph asked.

"Yeah," Sam answered. "I hid them in the back closet in the Infirmary Cabin. I thought Vlad would find them if I put them in my own cabin."

"Okay, when we get to the camp, we will split up," I said. "Sam, you and Eric go to the Infirmary Cabin and pick up the gadgets. Avoid the cameras there. Seph and I are going to get the book. We need to meet up somewhere."

"The cabin by the pond we used to go to," Seph said. "Its the only place near the camp without cameras and we can be hidden."

"Then its a plan," I said with a nod.

-Later-

"The bathroom?" I asked Seph in disbelief.

"You heard me," Seph said. "I hid the book in the main boys loo. It is a perfect place. And from what we see, it still is. Masters hasn't found it this whole time. He's probably so pissed right now."

"Good," I growled in a flash of anger. "And he can freaking stay pissed for all I care."

As you can see, I wasn't too happy with the man. He was the root of all my problems, especially recently. I had the right to be mad with the guy who had tortured me, threatened my friend and I, killed my sister and an entire camp, and planned on killing me at the end for ultimate power. Once I thought about it, I think I was more pissed than he was at the moment.

But it wasn't the time to punch a wall in or anything. We were all in danger because of Vlad. Even if I found out that we couldn't save the campers with their stolen souls, we still needed a means of escape. Vlad had us all locked in with his ghost shield. We needed to find what was powering it and turn it off before doing anything drastic.

"Okay, we're free to move," Seph told me. He had been looking out around the corner of a cabin we were hiding behind. The beast had just passed us a few minutes ago as if it was Vlad's faithful watchdog.

Gravel crunching under our feet, Seph and I ran for the bathroom a few yards away. The sun had just risen. It sat blazing warmly on the horizon. A light fog cascaded past our running legs that had come off the lake. If our lives weren't in danger, I would have enjoyed the beautiful scene. But at the moment, the fog was just kind of creepy.

We entered the large, cement building in low crouches. This was the first place Vlad and I had bumped into each other and he had almost broken my leg. I hated that man! A leaky shower head dripped eerie droplets of water, giving the open room a spooky feel to it. We didn't dare turn on the lights. Small windows near the ceiling gave us enough light anyways.

Seph entered the first toilet stall on the right side of the box shaped room. I followed him in and locked the door behind him out of paranoid reasons. I turned around to find Seph taking the lid of the back of the toilet off. He set it on the toilet seat and put his hands into the cold water there. Smiling slyly, he pulled out the old, faded book which was perfectly dry in two zip lock bags.

I laughed. "You're a genius," I said, shaking my head. "Why did you hide it here in the first place?"

"Because we were already in enough trouble with Masters," Seph explained as he took the wet plastic bags off our prize. "Plus, secretly I thought this had more importance than what I led on at first. The Guys in White told me to look out for anything ghostly, especially with Vlad. They wanted to prove that he was involved with hostile specter activity, and a kid spy at his kid camp was a perfect means to get that kind of information. But I think I've had enough of ghost encounters for one life time, if you ask me."

The crunching of gravel alerted us to the intruder coming up to the bathroom. Seph and I looked up at each other, faces going pale in fear. Seph hurried to put the toilet cover back into place. To not look suspicious, I unlocked the already closed door. Quickly but silently, we both jumped onto the toilet itself and balanced there just as someone came strolling into the room.

Heart pounding wildly against my chest, my mind jumped to horrible conclusions and outcomes. I had to listen to the person walk steadily to the middle of the room. I knew it had to be Vlad. Who else could it be? He was just making Seph and I jumpy. But I didn't have to worry about Seph. It was me I had to fret over.

"Seph, I know you're in here," Vlad called out loudly. I watched Seph tense up. He locked his jaw with a frown crossing his features. He hadn't expected to be found out so soon.

"If you and that little Goth girl come quietly, I might consider sparing you both," Vlad said. His voice was confident and smooth. He thought he had it all figured out. It was almost comical.

_BAM!_

Both Seph and I jumped at the startling noise just a few stalls away. Vlad had slammed the door open loudly. Oh man, he was going to find us! If that happened, Vlad would find the book, kill off Seph, take me back to that dreaded room in the mine, and eventually kill me, sealing the fate to the entire camp.

_BAM!_

It was getting hard to breathe. Flashes of that horrible nightmare of being strung up to that hook came back to me. I didn't know if I'd be able to pull off another escape stunt if I was captured again. This couldn't be happening!

_BAM!_

I couldn't go back to that room! I wasn't going to allow that. Seph and I needed to get out of there. My wild eyes scanned the stall for a weapon, anything. Seph tried to catch my gaze. He knew I was freaking out and was trying to calm me down before I did something stupid.

_BAM!_

Vlad had one more stall before the last one, which was ours. My brain went into a desperate mode when the possibility of getting put back in that room crossed my mind. That's when something came. I gritted my teeth and started to yank on my collar.

Seph saw what I was doing and freaked. He didn't want to get blown to pieces, I guessed. The teen vigorously shook his head no as I kept pulling at hard as I could. Soon he was mouthing no to me and trying everything in his silent vocabulary to try and stop me.

_BAM!_

With a final yank, I got the collar off. Grinning inanely, I bent down and threw the thing under the door. Vlad paused to watched the unknown object skitter across the cold floor. Seph found this a great time to get out of there. He grabbed my arm, used a shoulder to bust open the door, and managed to knock Vlad right off his feet. The man had gotten in the way of the door when Seph had forced it open so suddenly.

"Run!" Seph screamed. He pulled me out of the stall behind him. We sprinted out of the bathroom, not caring where we were heading because it really didn't care. The place was going up in flames at any second anyways.

_BOOM!_

Screaming, Seph and I were pushed forward from a massive heat wave. We tumbled head of heels as the explosion hit our backs. Thankfully, the collar didn't have much C4 and we didn't catch on fire or have any unwanted toilets flying down from heaven and crushing us. I wasn't so sure about Vlad, though.

"Come on, Danny!" Seph shouted down at me as he scrambled back to his feet. "Get up! We gotta get out of here!"

I coughed on the black smoke enveloping my body as Seph pulled me to my feet. "Thanks," I muttered weakly. He had a few cuts from random debris, but he looked good enough to keep going. I was a bit shaky, but was okay too.

"You're crazy, Fenton!" Seph said to me with a laugh as we ran away from the smoldering bathroom building that was still on fire.

"I kind of panicked, actually," I admitted.

"Who cares?" he said. "We got the book and I don't know what happened to Masters. At this point, I don't think we should care. He's caused enough damage at this camp."

We rounded the corner and watched as Vlad Plasmius phased up from the ground right in front of us. I put on the brakes with a shout of alarm and grabbed the sleeve of Seph's singed Camp Happy Hills shirt to pull him to a stop too. He was too stunned to really react. This was going to be his first real ghost encounter.

Vlad stoically looked us over with a cold, hard frown on his face. His narrowed eyes were like ice piercing through me. I only stared back up at him in fear. It was all I could do. Running from Vlad when he was ghost was impossible at this point.

"Daniel," he finally said with distaste. His stare was unbearable. "What a surprise."

"You're not going to get away with this, Vlad," I seethed.

Vlad's eyes widened in surprise before he let out a bold laugh. "My dear boy, you are in no situation to talk like that," he said with an evil chuckle. He leaned down so we were nose to nose. It took everything in me not to take a step back, but he could tell that I was scared. "I preferred you as that stupid little boy stumbling around in the dark woods from a few hours ago," he said. "But I'm sure it won't take much to return you to that state." He turned to a gawking Seph and said down to me, "Maybe the death of your friend will put you back in your place."

"No! Stay away from him!" I screamed while rushing forward. Vlad caught me with one hand. He grabbed a bunch of the front of my shirt and firmly held me away as he confronted Seph.

"Give me the book, boy," Vlad ordered with an outstretched hand.

"How did you do that?" Seph asked. "Are you a ghost?"

"Yes," Vlad answered with some impatience, "But you're not going to live long enough to give that type of information to the Guys in White. Now hand over the book."

Seph frowned darkly. The initial shock of Vlad's alter ego was gone. Sure, he was scared, but the old Seph was back. "Hell no, old man," he growled back at Vlad.

"I have no time for this," Vlad hissed before lunging forward with a hand. Seph brought up the book to block the grab for his neck. With a battle yell, Seph spun on one foot for a roundhouse kick to the man's head. Vlad easily caught the foot, brought the kid up in the air, and flung him down upon the ground with no pity.

"No! Just let him go!" I yelled hopelessly at Vlad, still in his hold. He ignored by cry, focused entirely on the teen sprawled out before him groaning in pain. I struggled in his grip. I had to help my friend.

Vlad shoved his foot onto Seph's chest, making the teen wince. "You've been a problem since day one," Vlad growled down. He smiled sardonically before saying with some satisfaction, "At least now I won't have anything to worry about." He put out his glowing pink palm at Seph, aiming for his face. One blast from this distance would kill him.

I wasn't going to allow that to happen. Letting the white rings flash across my body, I set my sights on the man before me. The second I turned ghost, I phased through Vlad's hand, threw my arm and fist back, and laid everything out in that one burst of fury. My fist violently collided with the side of Vlad's head before he could even comprehend that I had changed form.

Plasmius pitched forward, blown away from the power of my punch. I watched him fall to the ground with my disgust for the man clear on my face. I was breathing hard from the effort. My whole hand throbbed too.

"Danny!"

I turned around at the shocked whisper of my name. Seph sat there on his butt, his eyes staring up at my floating body in a mix of fear and wonder. His eyes traveled over my snow white hair and connected with now green eyes. Wow. This was going to be hard to explain.

"Um...Danny, behind you!" Seph shouted, pointing for emphasis.

"Move!" I commanded while flying to the side. Vlad's blast of energy was inches from hitting me. He growled in frustration and blasted for me. Frightened beyond belief, I saw him coming. Instinct took over. I did a backwards dive into the ground, phasing right through it. Vlad was right behind me.

I came back up to grab Seph. He gave a fearful scream as I blasted up from the earth right under him, grabbed him around the waist, and kept flying upward. A short glance behind told me Vlad was right on my tail. I needed to shake him. This wasn't going to be easy with Seph as luggage.

"The book!" Seph called out to me after he got his head together. "I left the book back there!"

Keeping in a swear, I shot into a upside down arch in the air and came right back at Vlad. The move surprised my pursuer and I was able to phase straight through him. I put on the speed as I flew back to the spot were the book would be.

"I'm not slowing down," I told Seph. "You pick it up."

"Got it," Seph said with a nod. I changed my handle on him so that my arms looped under his arm pits so I could go faster. We came close to the gravel pathway. Seph was nervous about hitting the ground, but he didn't know that I was in complete control. After years of ghost fighting, flying fast in a straight line is nothing to worry about.

We were only a few feet away from the book when Vlad blasted out of the earth under the wanted object and picked it up with a triumphant laugh. Seph swore in either surprise or anger of the unexpected ghost. I only gritted my teeth and kept flying. I couldn't slow down. Not now. Vlad would get us.

Vlad had not expected me to move on, so he was slow to chasing me. Maybe that was what saved us in the end. Maybe it was because I flew faster than I had ever did in my life of being a ghost. Maybe it was a combination of the two. What matters is that after a few minutes of a crazy chase which consisted of a lot of turns and phasing through whole buildings, we lost him.

Setting Seph down on the tiled linoleum floor of the Mess Hall, I realized I was totally out of gas. Gasping for air, I had to sit on one of the tables in the darkened room to catch my breath. Sweat dripped off my forehead and onto the floor as I greedily took in ragged breaths.

"It seems like you won," Seph said after a long pause. He was out of breath too. I'm sure he wasn't used to high speed ghosts chases like that. I guessed that would be his first.

"Won what?" I asked while looking up at him. Maybe he was delirious. I had no clue what he was talking about.

Smirking, Seph answered, "The bet of course. You said that if I stayed by your side I'd see a ghost. Well, I'm looking at one right now. So I guess I'm jumping off the diving board naked."

"You also owe me fifty bucks," I said, grinning despite the grave situation.

A/N: I think Seph is taking Danny with ghost powers quite nicely. But then again, he kind of has to. Oh well. Blowing up the bathroom was fun. I really do enjoy blowing up things, either in reality or in my writing. Wow. I sound like a guy, don't I? Anyway, expect the next update next weekend. Yay for updating once a week!


	15. Chapter 15 Not A Chance

A/N: Long chapter, but SO good! I had some writer's block for a few days, but I got over it by watching the Cowboy Bebop movie. If any of you are anime fans, go watch it on Youtube. One of the best anime shows out there. But enough about me. Thanks for the reviews. They are awesome! Enjoy the long chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Danny Phantom or CHERUB.

Chapter 15 Not A Chance

"We can't stay here," I announced to Seph after we had caught our breaths. "I can't stay in this form for long. The beast can sniff me out. The last thing we need is that thing on our tails."

"Are you really a ghost?" Seph asked. He was looking at me weirdly, a mysterious expression in his curious eyes. He was constantly looking me over, trying to figure me out with a logical explanation.

"Didn't you listen to me?" I asked. I didn't even try to keep the annoyance out of my voice. This was serious and he was still hung up on my ghost form. "We need to get out of here. We need to get to the others."

Seph stared dumbly at me for a moment. I stared back, flabbergasted. Just a second ago he was joking around and totally fine with my new and unexpected form. Now he was going mental. I wanted to whack him over the head with one the metal folding chairs stationed at the table I was sitting on.

Fortunately, he got his head together and nodded. "You're right, mate," he said, trying too hard to sound professional. "How do we do that?"

That I could answer. Smirking, I got off the table and strolled over so that I was standing right in front of my friend. He looked intimidated with me this close. Before, it had been a confusing rush to him. Now that we could talk normally, he was weary of the power I had over him. He hadn't forgotten how close Vlad had come to killing him.

"I'm half ghost," I said. "Haven't you been paying attention?"

Before he could respond properly, I grabbed the sleeve of his T-shirt and turned us both intangible. He gave a startled yelp when he saw that we were sinking into the earth. Laughing, I dove into the ground, bringing the spy kid with me. He was going to have to get used to this kind of thing.

Soon, we were phasing through the floor of the mini cottage sitting at the edge of the lake. Eric and Sam were already there waiting for us. The kid angel gasped when seeing us come up from the ground and took a step back. Sam watched our arrival with wide eyes of shock. She hadn't expected us to come in that way, especially with Seph in tow.

"Whoa! That was enough creepy to last me a while," Seph muttered as I let him go and he returned to normal. He looked himself over, making sure I hadn't left anything behind.

"What happened?" Sam demanded to know from me. She knew that I would never go ghost in front of Seph without having a good reason to back it up.

I avoided the question with an angry sigh. The white rings quickly flashed across my body, returning me to my human form. Eric looked worried. I kind of suspected that he knew about my two forms, him being angel and all. Seph watched my every move with fascinated horror. I ignored him. Hopefully he'd get over himself and treat me normally eventually.

"Where's the book?" Eric asked. He had noticed that both our hands were empty.

"Vlad has it," I grumbled. "We got to it, but Vlad found us. He was threatening Seph's life. I had to go ghost and save him. In our rush to get out of there, we left the book behind."

"And we kind of blew up the bathroom in the process," Seph added.

"What?" Sam and Eric yelled in union. They stuck us with disapproving glares.

"I got the collar off and threw it into the bathroom where Seph hid the book to get away from Vlad," I tried to explain. "But that doesn't matter right now. What matters is that Vlad has his stupid book. All he needs now is me. We need to save those souls and then get our butts out of here before he or that beast of his finds us."

"Whoa! I don't know about you, but I'm good with just skipping the first and go ahead with the second," Seph said. "I mean, Masters is a ghost! It's way too dangerous for us to stick around playing hero. Those soul things you guys are talking about can wait, can't they?"

"My sister is one of those souls!" I snarled into Seph's face. "You think I can just abandon her? Hell no!" Seph flinched at my display of anger. But the emotion dissipated as quickly as it had been spurred on. Quietly, I said, "I promised that I'd do whatever I could to bring her back. I'm not quitting now because you're getting cold feet."

We stood there staring at each other for a minute, neither of us saying anything. My hard stare dared him to defy me. He was either with us or against us. It was his choice.

"You're right," Seph softly admitted, his eyes darting downward to avoid mine. "It's just that I was never trained for this kind of stuff...with ghosts and spirits and crap. I'm just..." He faded off here. He couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence.

"You're scared," Eric whispered. Everyone lifted their eyes off the cold cement floor to look at the kid. Eric smiled back at us knowingly. "All of us are scared, Seph. It's part of being human. All our lives are in danger. I'd be concerned if one of you weren't frightened. If I was like you guys, I'd be freaking out, I know."

"Yeah, but what are we going to do?" Sam asked in a whisper.

"I...I don't know," Eric said, his smile falling with these words. The room became silent as all four of us were left with our own thoughts. Not even the casual sound of bugs and birds chirping or the pleasant sound of campers playing was heard. The whole camp felt empty and dead to my ears. Vlad and his beast had wiped out everything. Were we next?

No. I couldn't and wouldn't allow that to happen. All we needed was a chance. We needed hope.

"Did you bring a Fenton Thermos?" I suddenly asked Sam. I kept my hard stare at the opposite wall. A plan was coming to me. I had to focus, too scared of what I'd do if I lost it now.

"Yeah," Sam answered. Her eyes lifted up off the floor to look at me. "Why?" she asked after studying my mysterious expression. Eric and Seph were looking at me too now. Their stares were begging for answers.

I gave them a grim smile and answered confidently, "We're going to give the beast what it wants. Me."

-Hour Later-

"How come this feels so much like old school Scooby-Doo to me?" Sam's voice asked in my ear. "Anyone else feel the same?"

"Yankees and their stupid cartoons," Seph's voice grumbled.

"What's Scooby-Doo?" Eric's voice now asked, trying too hard to sound casual and failing miserably.

"Where have you been living under? A rock?" Seph asked critically.

"So I haven't had a mission on earth for a few centuries," Eric said with a sigh. "Did I really miss that much?"

We had split up the Fenton Ear Phones Sam had brought along so that each person had one. With this many people on one line of communication, it was like working at drive through for a McDonalds, you hear every word someone thinks out loud, just without the greasy burgers and the heart stopping, but totally delicious fries.

I was beginning to get annoyed with the constant flow of conversation between the others. Maybe it was because I solely responsible for the first part of the plan and I didn't want their nervous bickering distracting me. But somehow, just hearing their voices was reassuring for me.

"Don't tell me you used to watch that dumb show, Sam," I scoffed into the microphone.

"There weren't many choices for cartoons when we were kids," Sam argued. "It was either watch the dog and hippy get the munchies or go into a coma from paka paka with Megatron and his anime alien robot crew."

"Paka paka?" Seph's voice held much confusion. "What the hell is that?"

"It's the Japanese name for when they flash a series of color images," Sam explained. "Anime shows like to use them for battle scenes and stuff. Wasn't Transformers anime?"

"I thought that was Pokemon when all those kids got brain damage from that one episode," I though out loud, not concentrating where I was walking. All the camp's cabins started to look alike after a while anyways. Besides, it's not like I couldn't feel the beast if it ever showed itself. You would think that it would have come running when it smelled me in ghost form. Maybe it couldn't smell a ghost. It was a possibility.

It was a possibility that was soon demolished. As soon as I rounded the corner of a cabin, there it was, sitting patiently on the far end of the gravel pathway as if it was waiting for me. I stopped in my tracks, overwhelmed by the vehement smell the monster radiated. His red eyes bore into mine. They held a horrible intensity in them as they looked into my soul and wanted to devour it. As its bloodlust grew, so did the sickening sent.

"It was episode 38, and they got epileptic seizures, not brain damage," Seph's voice corrected me.

"Wow," Sam said, not impressed.

I didn't even hear them at first. I was busy getting over the binding stare the beast had on me. It felt like I couldn't move, or breathe for that matter. The disgusting scent the beast was making was hard on my lungs. It was like I was a bird caught in a snake's stare. I needed to snap out of it.

"Danny!" Eric's voice cut through the line. His tone was hard and loud as he commanded, "Move!"

That did the trick. I blinked once, took a step backwards and away from the black nightmare, and blasted out of there. A quick look behind my shoulder told me that the beast was following right behind me. I shook my head. That had been weird.

"What was that for?" Seph exploded. "My ears should be bleeding! Jeez!"

"I got it after me, guys!" I sprung the news on them. "Get ready."

"What? When did this happen?" Seph asked.

"Right before Eric screamed at me," I admitted. "Thanks, dude, for snapping me out of that trance."

"Be careful with that thing around you when you're in ghost form," Eric seemed to scold me. "Thankfully, I'm more aware of the beast than all of you are."

Knowing that the beast would easily catch up with me, I put on the speed and recklessly flew around the corner of another cabin without slowing down. "And yes, Sam, the plan does seem a bit old school," I added with a grin.

"Well, at least someone watched the show besides me," Sam's voice teased Seph. "You Brits have no imaginations."

A chuckle escaped me. It was drowned out in the wind blasting against my face and flashing through my hair. Avoiding another sharp turn that could slow me down, I turned intangible and phased through a whole cabin. I looked behind me and saw the beast skid around the turn and gallop after me with a low, menacing growl. It was quick. We'd have to be quicker.

"What is that horrible smell?" Seph coughed through the head phones.

"It means its close, Seph," I said. "Look for us. You sure you can do this?"

"Martial arts was never my forte," Seph said. I envisioned his trademark evil grin then. I heard the cocking and firing up of a gun in the background. "And its too late to really be asking stupid questions like that, don't you think?"

A second later, I flew right on by the cabin the teen was waiting in. He was leaning out of the window with a ghost plasma gun cocked and pointed in my direction. His eyes ignored my fleeting form as he put his sights to the thing following me. I watched behind my shoulder as the spy smiled before pulling the trigger.

The beast had been so focused on me that it didn't even see the blast coming. In an explosion of green, Seph hit the monster dead on, knocking it off its feet and slamming into a nearby cabin with a pained yelp. Its black mass of a body smashed into the side of the building, easily crumbling the wooden panels in two. Splinters flew into the already green misty air.

"Nice one, Seph," I said into my headphone. I had watched the whole thing from a safe distance in the air.

"That was more fun than it should have been," Seph mused.

"Where did it go?" Sam's voice asked after a pause. I looked over and saw her and Eric coming out of separate cabins with weapons ready. "Should we shoot?"

"Surround it first, guys," I told them.

My blood ran cold when a sinister and angry hiss escaped the darkness of the torn apart cabin. Wearily, my friends circled the hole the creature had made. Seph cocked his gun. It hummed mechanically as it fired up. Both Eric and Sam had wrist rays pointed at the hole, ready to shoot when ready.

Red eyes flashed open from the depths of darkness. Seph didn't waste time deliberating. He shot another plasma blast without pity. A split second later, Sam and Eric open fired as well. They didn't want me to take any chances, so I was forced to watch the show from above.

With a feral growl, the beast nimbly leapt out of the way of the first shot from Seph. Another part of the wooden building blew out in a cloud of green slim and smoke. I watched with horror as a black mass jumped out of the damaged cabin and charged straight for the main attacker, Seph.

"Hell no," Seph's growled as he took a few steps back and cocked his gun another time. Sam and Eric were blasting their wrist rays right at the creature advancing upon Seph, but the thing was too fast, a destructive and scary blur to the human eye. It jumped into the air with a snarl, pure white jaws open and ready to devour my friend.

Seph ducked the incoming monster with a deft roll to his right. He came back up on one knee just as the beast had landed and had charged for another attack. Seph swiftly brought up the gun and fired point blank at the monster without flinching.

The effect was just like the first. The beast was forced into the cabin by the blast. The reaction was totally different. My friends advanced without hesitation. Now that the thing was down, it was easy for Sam and Eric to get their wrist rays to make connection with their evil target. Seph got to his feet, cocked his gun, and took another shot at the writhing, black hearted creature at their feet.

To help them out in their quest, I built up a big ball of ectoplasm in my hands. I crafted the ball with angry and sharp movements of my hands, letting it build with my vengeful mood. I threw the massive sphere down at our prey with a furious yell and watched with much satisfaction as it hit the creature with an explosion that forced my friends to cover their faces and take some paces back to protect themselves.

"Now, Sam!" I shouted into my headphone.

Before the smoke even cleared, Sam whipped out the Fenton Thermos and pointed it at the smoldering mass of black. In a flash of brilliant light, the temporary subdued beast was sucked into the confides of the cylinder container. We all knew it would get the strength to get out and free itself at some point, but this way we had the time to make a move.

I floated down to where the others were standing. We were all breathing hard from the battle, trying to figure out if we should be happy from the triumph of imprisoning the beast for the time being, or totally freaked that now we had to confront Vlad. For me, there was no difference between fighting the beast and Vlad. Both were just as heartless and cold as the other.

"That wasn't as bad as I expected it to be," Seph panted.

"Dude, you almost got killed," I told him dully. Maybe he wasn't fearless, just crazy. I'd believe that.

"I knew what I was doing," he said with an ironic smile. "I've always felt uncomfortable with karate and hacking into computers. But put a gun in my hand and a concrete plan, and I can function easily."

"Society has given us a trigger happy teenager," Sam sighed. "I feel so safe."

"What are you, communist?" Seph asked her. His eyes were narrowed in irritation.

"No, I like having my own voice," Sam shot back. "Do you have one, working as a government lackey and all?"

"Of course I do!" Seph spat, his anger rising with the conversation. "Just because I work for the government, doesn't mean I've been brainwashed or something. I made the choice to join them. Don't go spouting knowledge until you know the full story. You know nothing about me, my life, or what I've gone through, okay?"

Sam was taken aback by Seph's display of hostility toward his personal life. We all knew she had pushed too far with her own, nonconformist views with him. And the Goth girl genuinely looked apologetic when she said, "Sorry, Seph."

"Better be," Seph said moodily, "'cause I'm one of the good guys."

"You guys done?" I asked wearily. Eric and I shared common glances. Were we the only ones in this group with our heads on straight?

"What?" Seph and Sam asked at the same time. They both looked ready to explode on me with their fierce glares.

"Nothing," I said with an innocent smile. I put my palms up to look non threatening. "Just wondering when you guys think its a good time to head over to Vlad's cabin." I caught Eric's grin as he heard me try and dissipate their hardheadedness.

"The beast will get out of the thermos soon," Sam said. "We should go as quickly as possible." We all nodded in agreement before running for Vlad's cabin. We left the Fenton Thermos in the cabin before taking off. We didn't want to be anywhere near that thing when the mad beast busted out of it.

The cabin wasn't very far away. As we advanced, the others around me got their weapons ready. I noticed that all the windows were dark, the lights were out. Vlad had been so set on killing off the camp that morning that he hadn't even bothered to turn the lights on professionally.

He really had no need to. In the cabins Seph, Eric, and Sam hid in before attacking the beast, soul stolen and physically dead kids were spread out on the beds. I had seen the lifeless bodies before, but it was still creepy to see them there.

I was first to reach the steps. I skipped the labor of going up them and flew to the front door instead. I phased through it, turned, and unlocked it from the inside. The others opened it a second later and followed me deeper into the darkened waiting room. Millions of glass eyes stared disapprovingly down on us from their perches on the walls.

"Disgusting," Sam commented as her gaze flew up to the dead animals nailed stiffly to all the walls.

I didn't waste time with the office. We weren't exactly looking for Vlad. Actually, I wanted to avoid him if that was possible. What we were there for was the generator keeping up the invisible force field preventing anyone entrance or exit. If that wasn't in our reach, we at least wanted to get through Vlad's security system and get to Seph's true boss to bail us out and my parents because they would know what to do with the ghost shield.

The door to Vlad's private quarters was unlocked like before. I flung it open and flew into the living room expecting to bump into Vlad. My muscles were tense and my mind was sharp. I was perfectly ready for a fight with this guy. But he was nowhere to be seen.

"Where would this generator be, Fenton?" Seph asked me.

"In that secret lab he has here," I said. Flashes of that bad memory of being strapped to that lie detector haunted my brain. I suppressed the visions as best as I could before going on. "He took me there once just a few days ago. I didn't see where it was, but I know he has it here somewhere." Seph gave me a skeptical look which I ignored. He'd have to deal with Vlad's weirdness like the rest of us.

"The kitchen closet," he said after a pause for thought. "Its where we found that ghost goo. Maybe he was covering up the entrance to it there."

"Good idea," Sam said as she rushed into the attached kitchen with Eric by her side. She flung open the door there let Eric go in first to pick up the ectoplasm residue bags Seph and I hadn't used to douse Vlad's cabin with. With a grunt, he picked two bags up at once and threw them aside. Sam soon joined him with Seph and I waiting behind them.

"Here it is!" Eric exclaimed. He was on his hands and knees in the closet. His fingers traced the faint outline of a cut out in the floor. A smile flashed across is lips.

"Get it open," Seph urged. Eric and Sam struggled to get a grip under the cut out. They weren't getting anywhere. There had to be an easier way. I looked around the closet and smiled.

"How 'bout we press the open button," I said smugly. Everyone looked up at me in surprise. I reached out with my left hand and slammed it against the small green button on the wall. With a swoosh, the door opened by our feet.

"How convenient," Sam muttered before taking the first bold step forward. She didn't wait to see if we were following because we were, the excitement clear on all our faces. This was first time in hours that we had a hope of surviving this mess. Eric went down right behind Sam. Seph was third. I was going to bring up the rear.

The stair beneath my falling foot was replaced with floor. I paused first in confusion. Had I accidentally pressed the button again? Or did the door have a time limit of being open? A dark shadow engulfed my own suddenly. My breath caught in my throat as a stroke of fear flashed through me.

I didn't even get the chance to turn and face him. A pink energy blast slammed harshly into my back. I was pushed forward and into the wall there with a yell of surprise. From my place on the floor, I looked up and saw my smiling adversary standing tall at the doorway.

"Daniel, I'm surprised you were stupid enough to come back," Vlad said with an amused smile.

I refused to talk to him. My friends needed me. I could hear their alarmed yells through the earphone and the banging on the covered door to the lab beside my fallen form. I shot a glare up at Vlad and turned intangible.

"Uh, uh, uh," Vlad chastised like a scolding parent. He waved a finger in my direction and summoned a pink force field over the door to the lab before I could retreat.

I crashed head first into the glowing piece of energy with a cry of distress. Growling in anger and frustration, I slammed both my fists down onto the shield. Another blast from Vlad caught me off guard, forcing me back into the wall and leaving me gasping in pain on the floor.

"You know I can't let you go galavanting off with your little friends," Vlad said with pretend sympathy in his voice. "We have some things to settle first. And I'm very sure you're not going to come quietly."

"You're smarter than you look," I shot back before blasting toward him. I needed to get out of the closet. It was too cramped. I couldn't fight in such a tight space.

Vlad threw his hands up, creating a ghost shield that took up the whole doorway. I slammed on the brakes and came inches away from ramming into the glowing, transparent wall preventing me freedom. Laughing, Vlad let down the shield and threw another energy ball at me. With a cry of pain, I was forced back into the wall.

"What? You don't like your new play pen, Danny?" Vlad asked with another wicked laugh.

Wincing, I managed to get to my hands and knees to catch my breath and get my head together. I needed a plan, or at least something to go by. But if I couldn't get away from Vlad, I at least needed the others to get help. I would have to distract the fruit loop while they went ahead with our original plan. That's the way it had to be.

"Guys!" I yelled into my headphone. "Go find the generator and get help. I'll handle Vlad."

"You sure, Danny?" Sam asked with worry clear in her voice.

"Go! Now!" I commanded. Then, in a whisper, "I'll be fine, Sam."

"Still playing superhero, are you?" Vlad asked. He threw another energy ball at me. I jumped into the air and avoided the first. His second shot hit me square in the chest and slammed me back into the wall. I couldn't take more of this beating. I had to get out of this closet!

Vlad raised his palm again for another energy ball. My eyes searched for a way out. Just as he let the ball go, I lunged for one of the few ectoplasm residue bags and kicked it at the incoming missile. Wet green goo exploded out of the bag, leaving nothing untouched.

Before Vlad could get his head on straight, I rushed forward and kept low with my flying. Smiling in my small amount of victory, I weaved through Vlad's legs to my freedom from the closet. I flew close to the ceiling and spun back around to confront my enemy, fists blazing.

"Very innovative, Daniel," Vlad growled up at me. He looked totally pissed as he wiped off globs of green goo from his face and shoulders with disgust written all over his face. "But do you really believe you have a chance at beating me?"

"How 'bout I show you?" I yelled. I flew right for him, my fist raised for the punch. He easily glided out of the way of my swing. I expected that because my anger burst had been a fake. I remembered watching Seph with his perfect roundhouse kick. I spun on one foot like he did and my heel connected with Vlad's unsuspecting head.

Vlad reeled after the devastating blow. His red eyes narrowed in anger on me. It was then that I realized the witty banter and light hearted Vlad was gone. I had made him mad. More than that. I had made him dark and cold. I was dead.

Quicker than I'd ever seen him, the man grabbed one of my wrists and spun me around in a lock. I was just functioning enough to know I was in his grasp when he suddenly let go and kicked me between the shoulder blades. My body slammed into the linoleum floor of the kitchen with a wince.

I rolled onto my back and watched with wide eyes as Vlad's foot flew past my head and crunched the floor where my head had used to be. I was officially scared. Running on pure instinct now, I raised my palm up at the ghost looming ominously over me and shot a ectoplasm ray at him.

The ray made him back up with a cry of surprise. I pushed past my fear and summoned my anger. That was all I needed. Anger. With a loud battle yell, I flung myself up from my position on the floor and punched the man in the chin.

Fueled on the great feeling I got from hurting this heartless man, I spun around and shoved my elbow into his chest without any pity. "That was for my sister!" I screamed in pure rage. Spinning on one foot, I completed another roundhouse kick to his head.

This was the last straw for Vlad. Before I knew it, he had a fist full of the front of my jumpsuit and we were face to face. "You can yell all you want at me, boy," he hissed menacingly, "But in the end, you're going straight back to that mine with me even if I have to drag you kicking and screaming the entire way there."

With that scary thought ingrained into my head, Vlad blasted me into the living room wall. My head spun after that rough impact. I had to fight off dizziness. No way I could turn human now.

I looked up just in time to see Vlad flying at me with his fist ready to whack me into tomorrow. I avoided the punch by diving downward. But Vlad caught on and blasted a well aimed energy ball at me. It caught me on my side. I was too close to the ground to avoid hitting it. I skidded across the carpeted floor, gasping for breath when I came to a sudden stop.

Vlad quickly advanced. I forced myself to scramble back to my feet. He stopped right in front of me, to my surprise. I took a tentative step back before curling my hand into a fist and thoughtlessly came charing at my adversary. He side stepped me, caught my wrist, and lifted me off the ground with one hand.

"You never had a chance," Vlad said emotionlessly.

His free hand shot out for my chest and stomach. Somehow, he knew the exact pressure points, like a freaking Kung-Fu master. His fingers seemed to crush into my chest. Paralyzing pain shot through my entire body. I couldn't even shout out in pain. Instead, a wad of blood spurted out of my mouth, replacing my cry of agony.

Vlad released me and I dropped like a limp doll to the floor. I could feel his red eyes watch me mercilessly as I writhed on the ground, coughing out blood and gasping. I could barely move. The pain was constant and excruciating beyond believe. Tears built up in my eyes. What had he done to me?

"You had that one coming, Daniel," Vlad icily said to me. He then bent down and grabbed the back of the neck of my jumpsuit. With precise steps, he started to drag me across the floor. I didn't stop him.

"The effects will ware off soon," Vlad explained to me as he picked me up bridal style. He plopped me down on the couch in the living room. I wasn't getting any of my feeling back as Vlad turned the couch around so it faced the closet in the kitchen.

"What are you doing?" I whispered, my fear making my voice crack.

Vlad didn't answer. He briskly flew back to the kitchen and opened the door to the underground lab where the others were. My already racing heart slammed violently against my sore chest, sending shots of pain with each wild beat. I didn't like this.

"Tell them to stop whatever they are doing and come back up," Vlad ordered me as he sat by my side. I looked over at him wearily, but said nothing. My skin crawled to have him this close to me. Vlad ripped the earphone out of my ear and shoved the microphone in my flinching face, yelling brutally, "Tell them!"

I glared daggers at Vlad for a long moment, contemplating my very few options. Getting tired of my stubbornness, Vlad used another technique to make me obey. He rested the tips of his fingers against my chest where he had hit me. I could do nothing but try to breath as he began to press them into my chest.

The pain was as bad as before. I sucked in a deep breath at just merely the touch of his fingers. His cruel eyes were focused on my face as he pressed down slowly on my heaving chest. Soon I was crying out. My hands curled up in fists to try and fight the torture.

"Tell them," Vlad repeated the order. To my relief, he took his fingers off my chest and put the microphone to my lips. I had my eyes closed. I couldn't bring myself to look into his eyes and give him the show of my defeat.

"Guys," I tried to say strongly into the microphone.

"Danny, we don't have the shield down, but I called my boss," Seph said immediately. "First he thought I was joking, but he got the picture after some explaining. He's sending backup right now!"

"And I just called your parents," Sam added before I could get a word in edgewise. "They're on their way. Where's Vlad?"

I didn't want to lie. They'd know anyways. I sucked at lying. So I avoided the question and told them, somehow keeping my voice steady, "Get up here quickly, guys!"

"We're on our way," Seph said, clearly overjoyed to have a rescue team on their way towards us. I didn't think anyone would get there in time. A moment later, Vlad took the microphone away and crushed it in a strong fist. He looked down at me unfeelingly before vanishing before my eyes.

"Danny! What's going on?" Sam asked from the kitchen. I turned my gaze off the invisible Vlad to look over to my three friends standing there with confused smiles. They knew something was wrong. Especially Eric. He kept looking around, trying to figure it out.

Suddenly Seph stiffened up, his eyes wide in shock. All eyes went to him. I'd seen that face many times before. Someone was trying to overshadow him.

"No! Stop!" I shouted in desperation at Vlad while somehow throwing myself out of my seat. I didn't get far because I still had little feeling. I ended up on my hands and knees.

The process was over a moment later. Seph's eyes turned red and he smiled evilly down at me. Sam and Eric took a step back from the possessed teen, knowing the danger behind those red eyes. Seph turned toward Sam and lunged out for her. She was too stunned to fight back.

Forcefully, Seph grabbed Sam's wrist and pulled her toward him. She let out a surprised scream as her body slammed into his strong chest. He wrapped one hand around her neck. The other hand brought up the plasma gun we had given him.

"Danny!" Sam screamed in pure fear when Seph placed the barrel on her temple. I felt like I was going to throw up, my gut twisted so much at this sight. Vlad had me exactly where he wanted me.

"Now, Daniel, you better be a good boy," Seph's body said with Vlad's sadistic voice, "Or your spy friend here is going to blow your little girlfriend's brains out."

A/N: Phew! I wrote that last fight scene just today and I'm kind of worn out from five hours of typing. I love writing too much. Seriously. But, wow, what a cliffhanger. Vlad is wonderfully evil. He is so much fun as a character. Like before, I'll be updating next weekend. See you guys then!


	16. Chapter 16 My Reward

A/N: If you read Future Mythology, you know why this is late. If not, I've been sleep deprived for days and couldn't function yesterday and couldn't type. But I'm good now. Yay for sleep! Anyway, I left you guys at an evil cliffhanger and I'm sure all you want is to read on. So, enjoy and review!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything from Danny Phantom or CHERUB.

Chapter 16 My Reward

It felt like my heart had been shoved into my throat. Breathing had become too difficult. It seemed like my body had rejected the notion altogether at the frightening sight before me. I wanted to move. I wanted to scream. I didn't do anything. I couldn't do anything. He had Sam.

I couldn't take the sight and hung my head in defeat. Gritting my teeth in agonizing frustration, I had to bite back bitter tears. "You win, Plasmius," I whispered without looking up.

"Danny, no!" Sam shouted into the deathly silent room as if breaking the air with her clear resolve.

My stomach twisted when she said this. I picked my head back up and glared at her with emerald eyes blazing with passion. "Don't you get it, Sam?" I said. "I can't go on. Not with you in danger." I shook my head no to make my stern point.

"No!" she refused, tears in her wide, scared eyes. "Don't do this, Danny!"

"Oh, be quiet, girl!" Vlad said through Seph's overshadowed body. He pressed the plasma gun at her temple deeper into her pale skin, making her flinch. I glowered at Seph's body, suppressing the urge to growl in anger at the man who had me in the palm of his hand with the threatening of this girl's life.

"Get out of him," Eric growled for me.

It was the first time the boy had spoken to Vlad. And it was the first time the ghost noticed the angel in disguise. Vlad looked down to see where the disturbance had come from and seemed almost surprised to see the kid there standing firm, not a bit afraid of him and his power. Either Eric was very brave, or very stupid. Maybe a mixture of both.

"Where did you come from?" Vlad asked, raising Seph's eyebrows with his emotions.

"Get out of Seph," Eric repeated unfalteringly. "You do not belong in him. His soul did not give you permission."

Vlad gave Seph a shocked expression as he regarded the kid. He then gave an amused laugh, mocking the boy with his chuckle. "Who do you think you..." He paused in mid sentence and his whole body went rigid. Sam and I watched Seph with hopeful and anxious looks.

"Fight him, Seph," I said, slowly standing on unsteady legs. I coughed into my gloved hand. Glancing at it with a grimace when seeing red and green stains of human and ghost blood splattered in my palm. The effects of Vlad's paralyzing move had damaged both the insides of my ghost and human forms. It wasn't a pleasant thought or one to dwell on at the moment.

Seph was fighting for control of his body. I could feel the two souls in the body wrestle for dominance. In ghost form, the feel of the battle was strong and hard to bear for me. Eric kept his narrowed stare on Seph. His hands were tightened into fists at his sides. He felt it too, just as intensely as me. Maybe he was even helping Seph. Could angels do that?

"Please, Seph," Sam whispered ardently to her friend. He still had an arm around her neck, but the hand with the gun was pulling away ever so slowly. She looked right into his eyes that were inches from hers and said, "I know you're fighting. Beat him, Seph. You can do it."

Suddenly, Seph drew Sam close and rested his forehead on hers. She gave a gasp, startled to have the boy so close to her. He had his eyes closed now and was breathing hard. The sweat was dripping down his head and neck with the effort for control. He gritted his teeth before saying, "I'm sorry."

Vlad slammed back into power a second later. He smiled evilly into Sam's petrified face, making her scream in surprise of the sudden drastic change. Eric took a step backwards when this happened, hissing in pain and defeat. He turned his face away from Vlad and murmured, "Darker than I thought."

"Enough of this nonsense," Vlad announced. He returned the barrel of the gun to Sam's head and glared down at Eric suspiciously. "You were merely an inconvenience, whatever you are. Now, do what I say or this time I'll really pull the trigger."

Eric said and did nothing but stare back at Vlad. He seemed to be thinking deeply. Vlad waited with impatience. "Well?" he asked.

"What do you want me to do?" Eric asked calmly. His glare was still piercing, though. I could tell that Vlad was uncomfortable under it. He kept fidgeting with the gun and shifting his weight from foot to foot. I'd never seen Seph's body so nervous before.

"Good boy," Vlad said as if the angel was his pet dog. At least Eric got the haunting stare down perfectly, just like Vlad's pet beast. If it wasn't so serious, I would have laughed at Vlad's restless reaction to the kid. "Go fetch me the book on my bed in the room over there. One misstep and I kill the girl, got it?"

Eric didn't respond vocally. He spun around on a heel and walked briskly off to Vlad's bedroom without a word. Vlad watched him go with a scowl. He didn't trust him. Meanwhile, Sam and I shared eye contact. Her violet eyes pleaded for my action, but I stood firm and slightly shook my head. I wasn't going to risk her life. I had no doubt that Vlad would kill her. He wouldn't hesitate. I wasn't going to juggle someone's life in my hands. Her life wasn't a toy.

Eric returned with the book about the Philosopher Stone in both hands. He was stiff and reclusive when walking back to Vlad and presenting him the book. I could see the look of disappointment on his face when Vlad told him to hold it for him till they got back to the mine. The mention of the place sent a shiver down my spine. I didn't have good memories of the place. I had to repress them to keep down the panic. I had plenty of time to freak out when we got there.

"Boy, you go first," Seph's body ordered Eric with a nod of his head toward the door. Eric shot Vlad another creepy glare before leading the line toward the door. "Daniel, you next," Vlad ordered stoically. "Don't try anything stupid."

I took a step and had to kneel as pain stabbed my insides. It felt like I was going to hack up a lung the way I coughed. Green ectoplasm blood sprinkled across the carpeted floor where I kneeled over.

"Danny!" Sam exclaimed when seeing my blood. This pushed her over the edge. She struggled in Seph's grip on her and yelled at him, "What did you do to him?"

"It is useless to struggle," Vlad grumbled, easily keeping her steady even in Seph's makeshift body. "I was forced to put your friend into a state of permanent ghost form. I wouldn't try turning back human, Danny. The internal damage in that form would surely kill you. You will only stay alive if you stay ghost. Now move!"

With great effort, I stood back up and strived to walk toward a staring Eric at the door. It didn't go without a heated glare of hatred for the man. I had to hold my side to keep from collapsing. Thankfully, with each step, I found more strength.

Walking through the deserted camp was hard on all our parts. It was a beautifully hot day outside. The sun blazed relentlessly down on us in a blissful blue sky. Rare puffy clouds floated listlessly around the fire sphere. It would be a day that all the kids would be running around playing games, laughing, and enjoying a carefree vacation from the troubles of school, parents, and siblings. They would all be at the pool now, splashing and dunking each other. It was painful not to hear the regular cheerful sounds of the kids.

That day was like a funeral. It was deathly quiet. The animals and bugs were no where to be heard like always. The only sound was of four pair of feet shuffling across the gravel pathways towards the trail that would lead into the woods in the direction of the abandoned mine entrance. Not even a wind accompanied us with our sorrowful death walk. Dread weighed down every one of our steps.

A few times a snuck glances behind my shoulder to check up on Sam. She had a perpetual scowl planted on her face as she walked close by Seph's side. She would give me a concerned look every time I caught her eye, and I truly saw the fear in her now. She was terrified.

It was always Vlad's smirk that made me turn back around and look to the ground. The man angered me to no end. I knew I should have been scared, but I was more mad at Vlad to let the emotion pass through my mind. He had killed an entire camp including my sister, took over my friend's body, tortured, beaten, and threatened me, and now he held Sam hostage. The rage was hard to hold back. I could do nothing in retaliation. It left a sore pit in my stomach.

We broke off the main path and traveled into the silent forest. The thick woods was more creepy that day than the night before. At least at night there had been bugs and normal nighttime animal sounds. Now, just like the camp, it was silent and the smell of the beast was overwhelming. It hung in the air like billowing smoke stuck in a closed off room in a fire.

It was then when I wondered if the beast had gotten out of the thermos yet. Was it waiting for me inside the mine, licking its chops at the thought of its ultimate meal? How would it rip out my soul? Was it going to be just as painful as the ones in my nightmares, or would it be worse? Was I going to realize the exact moment the beast would tear through my soul and separate it from my body?

Maybe I could fight for my soul like Seph had did with Vlad. I could push the beast out of me like it did with me in Amanda's soul room. I'd stand my ground and fight for my life. It was a pathetic hope, but at least it was something. I had to save these people. I had to do something! But then again, if that meant I had to sacrifice myself, would I be ready to do so? The question weighted my mind.

Shivering with these morbid thoughts, we arrived at the swamp before the entrance. Eric paused at the edge of the steep cliff that lead down to the murky, dark waters. He lifted his eyes up to mine in uncertainty. Vlad and Sam were too far away to hear him whisper, "You aren't strong enough for this, Danny."

I gave him a weird look and stopped at the ledge. He was already heading down, smoothly skidding on the rocks with perfect balance. I watched him go, wondering what he meant by his words. What did he mean when he said I wasn't strong enough? Did he mean I wasn't strong enough to stand up to the beast? I couldn't let him throw me off.

"Keep moving, Daniel," Vlad said from behind.

Glancing behind me, I stumbled forward and almost tripped on a loose rock on my way down the steep slope. I wasn't eager to get to the swamp or the mine entrance, so I took it slowly. I chose my steps carefully, taking my mind off the horrors ahead by concentrating on not killing myself with a fall. Although, at this point suicide was sounding noble, but I wasn't that type of person. I was someone who fully believed in going down swinging. I wanted to be fighting till my last breath.

Ahead of me, Eric hesitated at the edge of the still, stagnant waters of the swamp. He looked behind his shoulder first to me then to Sam and Seph with a mysterious expression on his face. As I neared him, he took a giant step out across the leech filled waters to one of the many giant tree roots sticking up over the scummy liquid.

I stopped at the bank just like Eric had done. The constant whisperings of invisible spirits filled the air. The soft but eldritch noise gave me a shiver. I understood what they were now. These were the helpless cries of the souls without bodies. This was their resting place.

With a sigh, I jumped into the air and let the holds of gravity lift away. My insides still hurt from whatever Vlad had done to me only a few minutes ago and so I had trouble keeping myself in the air. I let myself come back down on a tree root, pushed off it, and floated smoothly to a new one.

We made it to the entrance of the cave easily. Vlad still had his ghost powers in Seph's body and was able to fly Sam and himself across, mostly dragging a protesting Sam along the way. But it wasn't till I had to renter the mine that my panic started to rise. My heart was now pounding restlessly. My breathing accelerated, and it was hard to keep myself under control. I wanted to bolt, fly away and get out of there as fast as I could. I couldn't do that to Sam, though. My place was there with her, Eric, and the overshadowed Seph.

The trip through the dark and dreary mine shafts was just as nerve racking. To sum it up, our trip to doom wasn't fun or exciting. It was more along the lines of terrifying because we all knew the outcome...death.

Eventually, we got to Vlad's destination. After walking about a half an hour through twisting and confusing shafts, deeper into Hades' Underworld it felt, he made us go into one of the many arch doorways leading into rooms or caverns. This mine must have been a pretty deep and complex place in its booming days. It felt more like a morbid maze to me than a place to mine minerals, metals, or whatever they were digging for.

We were escorted roughly into this new cavern and only given a second to take the place in. It had a tall, curved ceiling that made the place put all our sounds into mocking echoes. It was a large, vast chamber with cold walls and a haunting smell that just reeked of the monster. Without being told, I knew it was the room the beast rested in. This was where the box was.

Sure enough, a small, ancient wooden box had been placed in the very middle of the dark chamber. It was shaped into an almost flat rectangle with intricately carved pentagrams and hex signs artfully crafted into its sides and lid. It could have been considered an ordinary jewelry box from the past if it wasn't glowing a foreboding black color. The aura was powerful. Eric and I stayed near the walls of the cavern to keep away from it.

My eyes wearily took in the chains protruding out of the walls on the opposite sides of cavern. They stretched out on the floor, coming to a stop on either side of the forbidden box. I couldn't help but think this set up was for me. I wasn't ready for the wave of emotion that took over me, and I had to grab onto Eric's shoulder for support. I wasn't so sure if I could take this.

Vlad came in dragging Sam with him. He narrowed Seph's eyes on Eric and I and barked down at the kid, "Go put the chains on Danny."

"No," I refused with the shake of my head. I took my eyes off the box to look at Vlad and said helplessly, "Please don't do this."

"I'm afraid you have no choice," Vlad pitilessly snapped back. He dug the barrel in deeper to Sam's head, making her whimper my name. Tears ran down her cheeks. The sight of them wrenched my heart out. Sam was the strongest person I had ever known. To see her broken like this was more painful than any punch Vlad could deliver.

Hating every step I took, Eric followed me to the middle of the chamber. Being so close to the box felt like being shoved into a tank of piranhas without any open wounds. You can feel the danger of them swimming around your legs, waiting for that wonderful scent of blood before attacking, but the pain never comes. It put all my senses on edge. I didn't know why. It was just a dumb box.

"Don't be scared," Eric whispered to me as he put down the book by my feet. He picked up a heavy iron chain and raised it to my hand. "You've done all you could. This is the way God planned it."

This made me flash the boy an angry glare before hissing, "He planned on killing me and giving Vlad all the power he wants? Tell your god he sucks at planning!"

Eric didn't even react to my outburst. He simply snapped the first shackle to my wrist and picked up the next one with a calm air to him. When finished he looked sadly into my eyes. His stare seemed to be peering into the depths of my soul. Instead of avoiding it like Vlad, I somehow felt comforted. It was strange, but I didn't mind the good feeling.

"He has so many plans for you," Eric whispered very faintly, his voice wavering a little in a show of emotion. I'd never seen him like this before. It drained my anger towards him and his boss.

With that said as a last, confusing goodbye, Eric left me standing in the middle of the large chamber alone and vulnerable. I had to watch as Vlad grabbed the book out of Eric's hands and shoved Sam at the kid. The two backed away from the man in a teen's body. But Vlad was done with his evil manipulation and had no use for Seph's body. He flew out of the teen and kicked him in the back toward Sam and Eric.

Seph fell into Sam's arms with a groan of pain and confusion. Those were usually the effects overshadowing has on humans. I was sure he was glad to finally be free from Vlad's rule. But after a quick survey of the room, his high spirits dropped a few more notches. We made eye contact, and I saw the fear of loss on his face.

Vlad began to walk up to me, but I ignored him for a fleeting moment. For me, the world slowed down. I stared at my three friends watching me with angst and suffering clear on their faces. These were going to be the faces I would miss. My memory went through the other faces: mom's, dad's, Jazz's, Tucker's, and so many others. It was all I had at this point, the memories of my loved ones.

Instead of trying so hard not to reveal my fear, I took a deep breath and let the emotion come and overtake me. My watery eyes traveled over to Vlad, who was now standing in front of me and looming over my weak form. Our eyes met and I let out my pent up breath and blinked away tears. He watched them travel down my face without any emotion.

"Ready?" he asked me stoically. He opened the book and flipped to a page showing of the incantation. With one hand the man held the spine of the book. The other he placed on my stomach. I'm sure he felt my gut twist in fear.

"No," I answered truthfully.

A smirk crossed his features before he said as if to get the last word, "Good."

He then began the incantation, speaking in a monotone, clear voice. His impassive red eyes never strayed from the book, and his precise Latin not once wavered. This was his moment of glory, his time in life. In only a few minutes I'd be gone, his beast would have its wanted soul, and he'd be the most powerful ghost of all time. He wasn't going to mess this up.

Close to the end of the incantation I felt a haunting presence enter the room from the box between Vlad and me. My eyes traveled down to it, and I couldn't keep in my flash of terror when seeing a charcoaled colored mass of smoke spewing out of the lid of the box.

Swirling into existence between our feet was the beast!

The eyes formed first and locked onto my petrified ones. Soon the rest of its black, spindly body formed behind it. Its malnourished limbs seemed to gangly hang off its curved spin like a bare skeleton's. It showed its ghastly white jaws with a thrilled growl. The noise seemed to reach right into me, wrapped its icy grip around my last bit of strength and resolve, and ripped it out.

My eyes stayed pinned on the beast's as I lunged sideways. The chains prevented me from moving more than a few inches. I cursed the iron binds frantically under my breath. My breathing became ragged and heavy as my fear escalated. I wasn't ready for this! I wasn't ready to die like this! Please, not like this!

Abruptly, Vlad finished the incantation and stepped away from me.

I remember seeing the beast coming slowly forward. I remember Sam was screaming my name, but to me it was a distant background noise. My eyesight was darkening, my vision fading in and out. All I could do was stand there waiting for the beast to strike for my stomach. I knew the pain. My nightmares had prepared me for it. What scared me was the fight before he took my soul away. I already knew I couldn't win it despite my recent hope of victory.

Right before the beast surged forward and I blacked out, there was a brief moment where things seemed to go out of control. Someone shouted Eric's name. Vlad rushed forward with a sharp command that I didn't catch. Something bright plunged into my body. I was too preoccupied staring into the two hypnotizing red eyes of the beast to know what hit me before the world became black.

Suddenly I was in my soul room. I'd only been there a few times before in my life when some other ghosts had tried to overshadow me. I stood in human form on top of a grassy hill overlooking all of Amity Park. The mass of brick and wooden buildings clustered tastefully together gave off a traditional, familiar feel to me. This was my home. This was my soul room.

A large, old oak tree loomed next to where I stood in the midst of a cool, refreshing breeze. It was a late spring afternoon, my favorite season and time of day. Accompanying this prefect picture was a dazzling red and purple sunset painted on the horizon. In the distance were bird songs. Early cicadas gave off shrill but relaxing droning noises all around.

The hill was a melodious combination of modern technology from the town below and nature which surrounded me. In my mind, it had a perfect balance.

My version of paradise came crashing to a halt when it plunged into darkness. The warm temperature dropped below freezing, making me shiver instantly. This was just like Amanda's soul room. I stood stalk still, scared out of my mind. The beast was out there in the inky blackness. There was nothing I could do to stop it now.

"Give me control," the same cold, haunting voice from Amanda's soul room demanded. It seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere at once. It had to belong to the beast.

I searched my black surroundings with useless eyes. It was no use. I couldn't see anything.

"Give me control," the beast repeated.

"No," I refused. My voice sounded hollow in my ears.

"This is the consequence of disobedience," the voice said.

In the blink of an eye, I was standing back in the cavern. I didn't know what was going on at first, not knowing if this was some vision the beast was giving me or if I was really back in the normal world. And if it was a vision, was it a real one or something the beast was just feeding me?

I didn't have the time to figure it out because I was met with the horrible scene of Vlad approaching my three friends. Sam was crying and hanging onto Seph's arm. Seph looked wearily and frightened, but he held firm with his emotions and let Sam sob into his shoulder. Eric stood on his other side, glaring at Vlad who now stood a yard or two in front of the trio.

Without a word, Vlad brought up the plasma gun and took aim. Sam shouted a plea the second before the man pulled the trigger. The hot force hit Seph's chest, forcing him out of Sam's clutch and to the stone ground. Blood flung into the air as Seph's body seemed to fall in slow motion. The plasma bullet had ripped open his entire chest, destroying bone and disintegrating organs. His death had been instant.

I was forced to watch Sam scream in agony as she stared down at Seph's dead body. Blood seeped from his mangled form and traveled in crimson patterns across the rock floor. The pain and fear on her blood splattered face was so clear.

"Please, no!" Sam sobbed pathetically to an emotionless Vlad. The cold and heartless man was taking aim again, this time at Eric. The boy stared back, unflinching.

My heart had seemed to stop when I watched Seph's death. I didn't think I could stand another. But I didn't have the option to make it stop. Despite the gut wrenching pain of seeing a friend of mine killed a moment before, I had to see Vlad shoot again. This time Eric hit the ground just like Seph. Again, Sam's scream was too much for me to bear. But I was forced to watch and hear it all.

Sam knew she was next. So did I. But this was just a vision from the beast. I could do nothing nothing to stop the chaos.

Sam took in Eric's and Seph's bodies with tears streaming down her face. She then lifted her gaze to Vlad through bleary red eyes. Vlad took aim. His face was scary stone cold. He had no regret murdering these people. Sam saw this and knew she could say nothing to change her fate.

In complete character, Sam locked her jaw, dried up her tears, and gave her killer a look of fearless defiance. She looked death right in the face.

Vlad pulled the trigger.

Falling to my knees, I found myself back in darkness. It felt like my heart had been brutally wrenched out of my chest and crushed in Vlad's callous hands. First Jazz, now them. These were people I had loved! Their deaths kept flying across my vision, careening my thoughts in dangerous and dark directions.

"Give me control," the beast's voice echoed into my ears.

Cringing, I couldn't respond anymore. A sob racked my worn and fatigued body. The tears dripped from my eyes to the invisible ground, making quiet splashes of mourning. I had gone through so much! I had fought so hard! I was exhausted from struggling tooth and nail for myself and others. I had done everything in my power! Was this the price for trying to help others? Was death and pain my only reward?

"Danny."

I gasped through a sob and looked up in surprise. The room had changed from endless darkness to eternal white. And there he was, standing a yard away from me. He seemed to glow with light.

It was Eric.

"No!" I whimpered, squeezing my eyes shut and putting my hands over my ears. "You're just another vision. Please, not again. I can't do this anymore!"

"Danny," Eric said with sympathy. I felt him kneel beside me and lightly take my hands away from my ears. He kept his light grip on my wrists as he stared into my tear laden eyes. I couldn't deal with watching him die again. I didn't have the strength.

"I'm here to save you, Danny," Eric told me seriously. "I can take your place. I can overshadow your soul and let the beast take my own instead of yours. I can restore your human body. But I need your permission to do this. Will you let me do this?"

"My friends are dead," I said with drained energy. I gave another sob and told Eric, "I don't think I have the strength to keep going."

"Don't give up, Danny," Eric said earnestly.

"No, Eric!" I said. "It's over. I'm done. This is the reward I get for caring."

Eric paused for thought. He stared intently at my face, searching for something to sway my defeated emotions. Finally, he asked me, "Why are you a superhero, Danny?"

"What?" I asked, confused. Why was he asking this now? It seemed like such a random, stupid question.

"Why do you save people?" Eric asked me. "Human nature is dark and selfish. I've been here before the world was even created. Since the beginning, humans have always been naturally evil. You could so easily be the same as the rest of them, be like Vlad. I ask you again, Danny, why are you a superhero?"

"I..." I stopped in mid sentence in surprise. The words had left me. I had been so ready to give the cheesy answer of the world needing me. But now it seemed too light hearted. This was serious stuff. Eric gave me time to think.

"I love flying," I said after deep pondering. Eric tilted his head, not expecting the answer or the faint smile on my face. "I love the rush of a ghost fight. I love sneaking out at night with my friends to hunt after ghosts, their smiling faces with each catch, seeing the thankful faces of the people we save from distress, knowing my town is safe when I close my eyes each night, and knowing what I do was meant for me and that even though I do make mistakes I'm doing the right thing in the end."

Eric grinned at me. "That was a lot," he said with a laugh. I smiled sadly back, waiting for him to say more. "But its good," he continued. "You were given a gift and you use it well. And in the end, you do make the right choice." He paused to give me a stern, grave look and said, "What if I told you that you could still save the souls of the camp? What would you do?"

I looked away. My friends were dead. There was no way they were coming back. I couldn't save their souls. But then there was the entire camp to think about. That little girl from that first nightmare was relying on me. I had promised to her and myself that I'd save her and Jazz. I had to do something.

Before I got too ahead of myself, I had to weigh things in my head. Would I be strong enough to defeat Vlad? Would I be able to go through the world with the death of Eric, Seph, and Sam on my hands?

Yes, I was devastated from their deaths, but that didn't mean I couldn't have a life after this. I still had my parents, Jazz, and Tucker to think about. What would they all think if I didn't show up either? They needed me. And I couldn't let Vlad win. If I had the chance to go back and avenge my friends' murders, I needed to take it. It might be my last action, but I was going down swinging.

"Help me save them," I said to Eric.

"I knew you'd say that," Eric said with another grin.

"What will happen to you?" I asked him.

"I will be fine," he answered. "The beast is powerfully dark, but I'm on the winning side."

We stood now. I looked around and saw that the scene had changed back to my normal soul room. It gave me a little motivation to see Amity Park in the distance. I looked back down at Eric and asked, "How does this work?"

"Just tell me that you give me permission to take over," Eric answered. "I do the rest."

"Okay," I said with a nod. "Eric, I allow you to go crazy."

"Teens and their sayings," Eric chuckled.

A bright light blinded me with the snap of Eric's fingers. I closed my eyes and let the light wash over my body. It seemed to seep into my skin and regenerate me. My soul and body felt energy flow through it. I was overwhelmed by the warm sensation.

I don't know how long I stayed that way, but when I opened my eyes I was inside the cavern, still chained to the walls, and the box at my feet. Looking up, I saw the incredulous look upon Vlad's face as he stared at my glowing body. I bet his mind was going through a brain fart at just the sight of me alive, no trace of the beast in me.

Then, the unbelievable happened.

"Danny?" two voices asked in union.

A/N: I was debating whether or not to include those last two lines. Then I thought that it would be WAY too evil. I've been jerking your guys through so many evil cliffhangers lately, especially with that last one. I'm thinking this fic only has two more chapters left. Man, the fic is going by way too fast! Well, see you readers next weekend!


	17. Chapter 17 Winner Takes All

A/N: Sorry for the delay. My family has finally decided where to move to, which is Peru in South America, and we only have a month to prepare for the overseas move. So, busy is a good word to describe my life right now. But, wow, finale chapter! I never thought I'd get this far, actually. I've been having so much fun. But because it is the finale chapter, it is longer than most and full of action! It is an awesome chapter, so go ahead and read and enjoy!

Disclaimer: Danny Phantom belongs to Butch, and CHERUB belongs to Robert. Not me.

Chapter 17 Winner Takes All

I gave a sharp gasp, stumbling forward onto my hands and knees. The world spun with the aftereffects of whatever Eric had done to to me in my soul room. I didn't even consider the fact that I had phased through the chains and was now in human form. Relief of the purest kind washed over me, making tears come to my eyes. I had been pushed to my very limit, had everything dear to me ripped violently away. Now, to hear those voices again, was worth all the pain.

I looked up and saw their worried and frightened faces looking intently at me on the floor. They weren't dead! Seph and Sam weren't dead!

The emotional moment was cut short when Vlad grabbed the front of my shirt and yanked me right off my feet. An alarmed cry escaped me as he viciously shook me around in his anger. He was as gentle as a chain saw. Right as I thought my brains were going to turn to mush, he brought me close so we were nose to nose.

I had given up hiding my fear for the man. It was obvious by now that his little spell with the beast hadn't worked. Me sitting there in human form, fine and dandy, was clear proof of that. I could see it in his narrowed, furious red eyes that bore vehemently into mine. I'd ruin his chance of power...and I was going to pay for it.

"What the hell did you just do?" Vlad roared into my flinching face. I didn't dare answer. How do you explain to your arch enemy that you didn't want to get your soul eaten by his demon beast and so made a deal with an angel inside your soul room to switch places, return to the real world, and free the rest of the souls? I wasn't ready to try.

We looked over to the box and chains, and I was somehow shocked to see Eric in my place. He was unconscious, his body slumped forward. A black aura that had been around the box had transfered to his body. It glowed ominously in the dark cavern. I didn't know what to think about this. I had to believe his word that he was okay. It wasn't like I could take my decision back anyways.

Disgusted with my silentness, Vlad gave a growl of anger and savagely threw me into my friends. We all gave cries of surprise and pain while connecting with each other and falling to the cold, hard ground. I looked back up at the man, still on my butt, and paused. He had the plasma gun pointed right at me head.

"If you ever want to hurt Danny, you're going to have to shoot me first," Sam said to Vlad. Dramatically, she struggled to her feet and positioned herself in front of me.

I couldn't see Vlad's reaction because Sam was in my way. But what I heard made my heart skip a beat in fear. It was the cock of the pistol. It hummed ready.

"Don't you dare, Masters," Seph growled. He stood up beside me and put himself in front of a surprised Sam. He spoke quietly but with a harsh, firm undertone. "I work with MI5. Just an hour ago, I called them and requested immediate backup. They will be at the camp any minute now and trace me back here. Right now, they have no incriminating evidence to arrest you. Right now, you could easily walk away free. But if you kill any one of us kids, that's murder. That's a life sentence or the death penalty. You sure you want that?"

I thought it was a pretty good argument on Seph's part. He had a lot of logic on his side. Any normal person would have put the gun down and said he was beat. But it wasn't that simple with Vlad Plasmius.

The man laughed cruelly before sneering, "And what would happen if I shot all of you and then turned back into an innocent human? There's no evidence there. I could say a ghost killed all of you. Besides, now that you know that I'm part ghost, I can't let that information out to MI5. How 'bout it, Joseph? You want to be first?"

"You're sick," Seph snarled back with hate. But the teen didn't back down. He firmly stood in front of Sam, protecting both of us nobly.

Vlad chuckled at this. "Its just business, my boy," he said. "You did yours, and now I'll do mine."

Faster than a heart beat, I was in ghost mode and blasting through both Sam and Seph. Vlad had his arm extended, his finger wrapped tightly around the trigger, and aiming right at my friends. I had seen him kill them once before and was useless to helping or saving them. This time I wasn't even going to let him come close.

"No!" I screamed, wrapping both of my hands around the barrel. I pushed it up just as he pulled the trigger. The shot whizzed over my friends heads' and crashed into the wall behind them. Rock debris exploded across the room from the blast. In the background, I heard Sam give a scream while ducking for cover with Seph.

Almost savagely, I yanked the plasma gun out of Vlad's hand and flung it off to the side. It crashed harmlessly against the wall and skidded across the floor. Roaring, I swung my arm back and dealt Vlad a powerful blow to his cheek. He staggered to the side, looking at me with a certain curiosity.

"That was the last straw for you, wasn't it?" Vlad asked me with raised eyebrows. "You look dreadfully mad, Daniel. What are you going to do, fight me? You know you can't beat me."

I hovered there, glaring down at my smiling adversary, listening to all the frustrating words coming out of his mouth. He was right. When was there ever a time where I had fairly beaten him in a ghost fight? There was none I could think of. What made me think that I could do this, that I could beat him?

Simple. It was what Eric had said. I was on the winning side. This time...I was going to win. Something in me, an aching burning sensation told me that this was the time I was going to beat Vlad despite the circumstances. There was no way I was going to let that feeling slip me by. I was ready.

The man had made his moves on the chess board, cleanly knocking off every one of his opponent's pieces, thinking he had won the game since the beginning. But what he didn't realize was that he was playing against someone who never gave up. Even when I thought there was no hope, when I thought Seph and Sam had died, I had chosen to keep going despite the pain. Because of that, I knew nothing would stop me from my goal.

And my goal then was to help the lost souls in that swamp. The only way to do that was to defeat Vlad. This lonely pawn was going to take out the queen.

Smiling darkly, I let energy flow down my arms and collect at my hands. Eerie green ectoplasm vapors glowed around my fists. My eyes connected with Vlad's, and I said, "You ruined my vacation, I destroy yours."

I extended both my palms toward Vlad with a sharp battle cry. He waved a hand through the air, quickly creating a force field that blocked my ectoplasm attack. The rays disintegrated against the pink shield, leaving nothing but green smoke in its wake. Before I had the chance to blast another at him, Vlad had his shield down and flew at me.

The first punch I ducked. While crouching from Vlad's over zealous swing, I brought up a leg and shoved a foot into his exposed gut. He coughed in pain, backing away with a hand over his stomach. I lashed out with a roundhouse kick. It came inches away from his head when he caught my leg with one strong hand.

Without any pity, Vlad added his other hand to his grip on my helpless leg. With an angry yell, Vlad brutally flung me into a nearby wall. My back collided first with the rock wall and I cracked my head against it. Hissing in pain, I fruitlessly tried to righten myself. I was soon met with one of Vlad's powerful energy blasts to the chest and was pushed back against the dent I had made in the wall, gasping from the stabbing pain now in my chest.

Despite the ache, I managed to lift my arms up and cross them over my face as Vlad delivered another energy blast. A green shield formed around me and absorbed all of the attack. I shot high into the air, breathless, but eyes still on my enemy.

I came flying back down with an arm raised. My fist came close to connecting with the man's face, but he was serious now and quicker than he was in most ghost fights. With surprised wide eyes, he watched my arm as it extended past him. Then, with deft, precise movements, he had grabbed my wrist, locked it behind my back, spun me in his desired direction, and kicked me with a firm boot in the shoulder blades.

In mid air, I changed my position so that my feet were first to hit the wall Vlad had kicked me towards with a clumsy flip. I hit the wall in a crouch and looked up to where Vlad was hovering before pushing off the wall with my feet and using that momentum to shoot right into the unsuspecting man.

I slammed into him like a rugby player taking down his opponent with the ball. We fell in an arch and crashed into the floor, me on top and Vlad getting the harsher impact on the bottom. Speedily, I released my hold on him and pushed off his chest to become air borne again. Groaning in pain, the man shot back to his feet and followed me into the air.

I let out a gasp when Vlad latched onto my ankle and pulled me toward him. He grabbed a solid fist full of the front of my jumpsuit to hold me still before vigorously striking me across the face with a tight fist. After the second pummel, my nose exploded with pain. Green ectoplasm blood flung into the air between us.

"Get off!" I growled. He swung his fist back up. Desperate to get out of his hold on me, I wiggled a foot between us and shoved it against his chest. He was forced to let me go as I was pushed away. But I wasn't let off that easily. The fist glowed as he extended it toward me.

Crying out, I was hit with another energy blast that slammed me against the floor. Vlad hit the ground with a foot on either side of me. Frantically, I tried getting to my feet with Vlad towering sinisterly over me. I didn't get the chance to move more than an inch when Vlad bent down and placed his palm on my chest and let out a powerful energy he'd only graced me with once before. Where the heck he got so many powers, I have no clue.

Cracking electric energy sparked through my body, making my head spin and my muscles tighten in agony. When he was done, the rings had already coursed across my body and I was forced back into human form. I was left staring up at the red eyed ghost, greedily taking in deep, ragged breaths.

"I have to admit, Daniel," Vlad smirked down at my weak human form, "I am surprised you made it this far. What, you aren't scared?" He had noticed my heated, furious expression of frustration. "Did you really think you could win?" he asked me with a mocking laugh. "You really are foolish."

"You're going to have to kill me if you want to ever get rid of me, Vlad," I spat back with contempt.

Vlad raised a lone eyebrow at this then smiled a chilling, nefarious smile that sent a cold shiver down my spine at merely the sight. He grabbed my chin in a gloved hand and pulled my head up so our faces were an inch apart. I held my breath as his cruel touch was raw and foreboding to all my senses.

"Oh, my dear boy, you have it all wrong," Vlad whispered darkly, a wicked delight in his eyes that captured mine. "I have no intention of killing you now that my plan with the Philosopher's Stone has failed. You have too much potential. I'd hate to see such a specimen go to waste. You, boy, have always been my greatest game."

"I'm no one's game!" I hissed in panic and anger. What was he talking about? Just a few minutes ago he had been so ready to shoot me to death. Now he was telling me that I was some kind of an experiment in the waiting. These confusing thoughts disturbed me.

"I'm afraid you very much are," Vlad chuckled. He let my chin go and I fell back to the ground, stunned as he said, "It's check, Daniel. What are you going to do now?"

My anger for this man boiled. I could go on for days with the many evil, cold hearted things he had done in the past. The list is practically endless. And now he was simply writing them off as his simple little game. All my heated emotions came to one final peak in me. I loathed this man.

It was time to make my move.

The white rings flashed across my body as I struggled into ghost form. As I took a deep breath, I saw the complete surprised look cross Vlad's face as he leaned back away from me. Then I let out a powerful scream, one that I knew would waste me, but I was prepared to take the risk. I'd have to pull out all the trump cards today if I wanted to beat this guy.

My ghostly wail echoed off the craggy walls of the cavern and plowed into Vlad's unprotected form. With a wild cry from the man, he was forced away from me and into a wall. The pressure and power of my ghost wail was too much for him, and he had to turn into human form to protect himself. I watched him drop to the floor and quickly stopped the attack.

I had spent a lot of energy on changing back into ghost form and using that kind of a potent attack. Now I could barely cling to my current form. I was on my hands and knees, gasping for breath with thick beads of sweat dripping down my face and collecting under my unsteady, shaky form. But I couldn't quit now. I had some power left that I needed if I wanted to end this.

"You should know by now that that wail of yours can't beat me," Vlad said from where he was on his hands and knees by the wall. At the same time, we struggled back to our feet as if it was a race. Black rings flashed across his body, transforming him into his ghostly counterpart.

I didn't have any time left to gather strength. I would be a dead man if he ever got the chance to strike me again. There was no way I would let that happen. I had to attack again now!

Searching inside me, I found the one cold, freezing part of my body and grasped it firmly. I centered my mind on the power, fighting for the control of it. With a release of a deep sigh, I let the coldness flow through every inch of my body. I was the master of this frozen element.

Before Vlad could take a step toward me, I pushed my palms toward him and let the power explode out with unbridled energy. It only lasted a few seconds, but the effect was what had been desired. The frozen body of Vlad stood there twinkling in the dim light of the cavernous room.

With a savage roar, I brought an ectoplasm ball over my head and flung it at the ice sculpture of my adversary. It shattered the block of ice and forced a chilled Vlad back into the wall. Using the last bit of my strength, I flew forward while still blasting relentlessly at the man.

I was filled with desperate and righteous anger. My emotions had seemed to had been shoved into a bottle then shaken around inside my head. I didn't know how to stop now. It was like my body had been set on autopilot. My mind left me and let the body do its thing. It was the scariest few seconds of my life.

I remember throwing my arm back and slamming my palm against Vlad's forehead. I ground the man's head into the rock wall with vicious intentions. While I did that, I rammed a knee into his stomach and forced the air right out of his lungs. By now Vlad's green ectoplasm blood was staining the wall around his head that I still had pinned with a hand.

My free hand I tightened into a fist and punched Vlad in the chin with a strong uppercut. He gave a sharp, painful cry while staggering off to the side. In mid air, I spun on one foot and completed a roundhouse kick to the side of his head. I switched feet after the first kick and spun back around the other way. My foot violently connected with the other side of his head. Green blood splattered through the air around us.

Vlad flashed back into human form one the last kick.

I seized the front of his jacket and heaved him into the air. With one final, fierce roar of rage, I threw him back toward the earth. He hit the ground with a sickening thud, probably unconscious before he even made impact.

For a brief moment, the cave was deathly silent.

Shaking uncontrollably, I flew down to Vlad and raised weak, feeble fist, ready to hit the man although he was clearly out cold. It was like my mind couldn't except the fact that I had defeated him. It was still running on adrenaline, fear, and anger.

"Danny, that's enough," Sam's sad, calm voice spoke softly to me. From out of the confusion and darkness in my mind, I felt cold, frail hands wrap around my raised arm and lightly pull me off the man. She sat me down on the floor and wrapped her hands around my neck. She said and expressed nothing more.

"He's still breathing," Seph stated unemotionally. He was kneeling beside Vlad, taking his pulse. Quietly, he said, "Its good you didn't kill him. I'm not saying he deserved to live, but it shouldn't be you who kills him, Danny. You don't need the guilt. Trust me."

I stared silently at him for a long time. I think I was too stunned to say or do anything but let Sam hold onto me. I wasn't proud of what I did. I wasn't proud about pummeling Vlad to a pulp. I wasn't proud of what I had become for those few seconds of that final battle.

Sitting there, I pushed through those feelings. Yes, I had let my anger control me. Yes, I'd become something I never wanted to experience again. Deep down inside me, I knew that savage behavior had been in me since I'd obtained my ghost powers. That dark, scary side of me would always be there, ready to be released like it just had. I had to accept that part of me. With my ghost abilities, I'd always have a demon following in my trail.

That's what you get with being a half ghost.

With my emotions back in line, my head on straight finally, I was able to see my victory. For the first time, I had defeated Vlad. I had protected my friends and had won over my adversary. The joy of triumph brought tears to my eyes. With the back of my hand, I wiped them away then wrapped my arms around Sam in a comforting, warm embrace. I closed my eyes and smiled faintly. When had been the last time I smiled? It seemed like years ago.

"Are you okay?" Sam whispered to me after a moment of silence from all of us. We pulled away to look at each other. My heart fluttered to see her smile. I had thought that I'd never get to see that smile again. It overjoyed me to see it now.

"I'll be fine," I answered her question. I meant it.

"Guys," Seph said from across the room. He had left Vlad's side, picked up the plasma gun and forgotten book, and was now next to Eric, "The kid is waking up."

Sam and I scrambled to our feet. She had to help me into a standing position, and I had to lean against her as she walked us to Eric. The boy was slowly fighting through a haze. He shook his head, his eyes focusing in and out. We three waited by his side with anxious faces.

"You guys don't have much time," Eric's frail, dry voice said. When we didn't say anything, he lifted his head up and looked us all in the eyes. It felt like he was looking right into my soul. But it wasn't rude or intruding. In a way, it seemed to strengthen all of us.

"I can't keep the darkness out for too long," Eric explained in a rush. "You guys have to save the souls before I let the beast invade mine. To do that, you have to recite the same incantation in the book. Perfect, word for word."

"Whoa! Slow down there, kid," Seph said in alarm. He held up the book and shouted, "This thing is all in Latin! We don't know squat about Latin! I've only taken two months of it, but that means nothing! I've been on vacation for a month. You think I remember school that far back?"

Eric didn't let himself express anything as he stared back at all of us. A tense few seconds went by as the boy thought hard. Finally, he looked straight at Sam and said, "You know Latin, don't you?"

Seph and I glanced between us at a stunned, scared Sam. How the angel got news on Sam's knowledge of languages, I had no idea. Maybe his boss had direct connection or something, like a cell phone in his head. Besides that creepy point, he was still right. I faintly remembered Sam saying long ago that she was interested in learning it. But that had been back in sixth grade.

"I...I took two years of it online in middle school. I didn't tell anyone," Sam said quietly. "I was going through a Greek/Roman mythology obsession at the time. It was years ago, though. I don't know if I remember anything."

"You don't have understand the incantation," Eric said earnestly. "You just have to say it right."

Sam looked like she was going to faint. I could feel her slowly starting to freak out. There was a lot of pressure going into this. The future of the souls of the camp and maybe even the life of Eric now hung on her middle school fetish from two years ago. I'd be panicking too. Ghost fights I can deal with. Remembering a dead language from middle school, now that would have made my knees buckle.

Seph saw Sam's reaction and said, "There has to be some other way. You're crazy to think that Sam's memory of Latin is going to save the souls of this camp."

"There is no other way," Eric said with a firm frown on his lips. "She has to recite the incantation. I can't keep the beast away for long. Me speaking to all of you now is draining the last of my energy. Once I let the beast invade my soul, both of us will be destroyed, along with the box. When that happens, all our energies will create an explosion that will take out this entire mine. You guys will not be able to survive it if you are inside the mine at the time. You will have to find your way out quickly. You guys hear me?"

"What do you mean by both your souls being destroyed?" I asked, the emotion thick in my strained voice. I didn't want to hear the answer.

"Do not worry about that, Danny," Eric said. "You do what you have to do to save the souls and get out of here before that happens."

"No, we're not leaving you behind to die," Seph said. Frustrated anger was in his voice. "There has to be some way to get the beast out of you. We can then kill the beast after that." He held up the plasma gun and said with forlorn hope, "We still have this and the other ghost gadgets Sam brought along!"

Eric shook his head sadly. "No," he said. "The beast can not die like that. Only when it has the right soul and has taken it, then can it be destroyed."

"You don't have to do this, Eric," Sam told him softly. Tears were welling up in her eyes. Seph's and mine's eyes were wet too. We didn't want to say goodbye to the kid. He had helped us so much. It pained me to know that I was going to lose him. "You don't have to sacrifice yourself like this."

"You are correct," Eric responded slowly. He looked at us one final, last time before saying, "But I chose this path myself. Do not be sad. This was the way it was meant to be." With that said, he slumped forward, falling into unconsciousness. We stared at his glowing body with teary eyed disbelief.

Sam was the first to break the silence. She looked over to Seph and said boldly, "Give me the book." Seph hesitated, but he eventually let the Goth girl take the book out of his hand. He looked weary as he watched her open it up and flip through the pages. Her violet eyes scanned the foreign letters for the right incantation.

After what seemed like eternity, she stopped her page turning and stared down at a long passage written all by hand. The red ink was blotchy, but readable. It dawned on me, to my horror, that it had been written in blood. The poor girl beside me was paler than normal. I could see it on her face, the panic and fear of having the entire camp weighing hard on her shoulders.

"I know you, Sam," I whispered into her ear. I placed a hand on her shoulder and told her, "You'll do perfect."

She sighed. She had made her decision.

"No pressure," Seph said seriously. We both glared up at him. The teen saw his error and smiled sheepishly back at us. "You can do it, Sam," he said now, a reassuring smile crossing his features.

Sam looked back down at the book with determination set in her eyes. Seph and I backed away to give her some space. She took a deep, steady breath then began to flawlessly recite the passage as if the dead language was her native tongue. Seph caught my eye and we grinned at each other.

The incantation didn't take long. It was only a few paragraphs at the most. But with each sentence, I could feel the air become lighter. It was like her words were reversing this whole terrible experience. The thick smell of the beast was quickly fading away along with its horrible deeds. I could literally feel all the barriers and holds placed on the souls break one by one.

When she completed the last sentence and finished the incantation, all hell broke loose.

A blinding blue light exploded out of Eric's body. All three of us were blown off our feet with muffled screams as it rushed and cascaded through us and into the walls. It radiated out of the cave, making the rock walls grumble and rumble in protest to such alien nature. Our flashlights gave out at such an eruption of powerful energy. The cavern plunged into darkness, giving off echoing bellows as the energy surged throughout the cave in every direction.

Dust and rock pebbles rained down on us. I sucked in a lung full of the stuff by mistake and choked while curling up in a ball with my arms over my head for protection. I was still in ghost form and could have simply turned intangible, but I had no energy left. I was only ghost now to keep from passing out, I was so tired.

The flashlights flickered on a moment later. I heard Seph coughing close by and tried to sit up through the cloud of dust. The teen was getting to his feet. He choked again before asking, "You guys okay?"

"I'm good," I responded with the standard answer. I looked to my side where Sam was. My heart seemed to stop when seeing her motionless. Had she said the passage wrong and got killed for it? Did a rock hit her head and kill her? My wild imagination came up with thousands of gruesome visions of her death in all the matter of seconds.

"She just passed out," Seph told me after a five second check up. "Reciting the passage must take the energy out of you. Vlad had ghost strength on his side. She had nothing. She'll be fine."

"Oh," was all I managed to squeak out.

A low rumble shook the cavern as if there was an earthquake. Seph and I looked at each other in panic. I just then remembered Eric telling us to get out of the cave because of some explosion. We didn't have much time.

"Come on, Fenton!" Seph called over to me. He was already pulling Sam up and slinging her over his back, fireman style. "Can you fly us out of here?"

"No," I said, struggling painfully to my feet under a vibrating floor. "I wasted all my energy on Vlad. I can barely walk now."

"Then I'll have to lead us back out of the mine," Seph said. He had switched into survival mode. There was no stopping him now. He stuck me a hardened glare when seeing me eyeing Vlad's body on the floor. "You want to carry him, mate?" he asked me, his tone cold. It was clear who he wanted to leave behind. I decided I had no objections to his opinion.

"No," I answered honestly, "Let's go."

"That's what I like to hear," he said with a grim smile. With one last adjustment to Sam's body on his back, he took off in something close to a sprint toward the exit of the cavern. As best as I could, I followed him out. He went at a relentless pace even with Sam on his back. That, or maybe I was just extra slow from my depletion of energy. Somehow, I kept up with him as we ran down long corridors, passed hallways and empty rooms, and turned corner after corner.

"How do you know where we're going?" I asked him breathlessly.

"While Vlad overshadowed me, I could still see where he was going," Seph explained, as out of breath as I was. The mines were never ending it seemed. "I memorized our way in. It was a lesson we had to learn in training...the hard way. Mr. Large took us into a confusing cave one day without saying anything, then left us there to find our ways out with our partners. Good thing Kerry was the smart one and knew how to get out. Took us two days, though, because the cave was so big. After that one, I kind have a paranoia about memorizing everywhere I go. Comes in handy, I guess."

"I'll say," I said. It was the understatement of the day.

A low, menacing rumble started to quake through the hallway we had been running through. The floor was like sand under our feet. Both of us fell to the shaking floor with shouts of distress.

I'd never been an earthquake before, but this sure did feel like the ones I'd heard about. It was scary in a way that is hard to describe. No person or creature was threatening our lives, but we were still in terrible danger of losing them. With someone like Vlad, I could fight back. But when nature was taking its course, I could do nothing to stop it. The best thing to do is just get out of mother nature's way.

Choking on the dust swarming in clouds around us and avoiding the pebbles and rocks coming from the ceiling, Seph and I got back to our feet and ran like drunk men down the quivering hallway. We went as quickly as we could without falling and breaking something.

As we ran, the rumbling got louder and the shaking got harder. Soon, big, boulder sized rocks were falling all around us. Many times Seph and I almost got crushed by them. But we had slowed our pace by then to a brisk walk, although it consisted more of stumbles and we had to cling to the wall most of the time. That way, it was easier to see a rock falling and dodge it.

Abruptly, a strong shudder of the floor rattled the ground under us. The floor tipped back at a steep angle, throwing me off balance. A scream escaped me as I fell backwards and tumbled down the slope. I heard Seph shout my name.

A moment later I was falling into some kind of pit that had opened up from that violent quake that had caused my fall. In desperation, I floundered for the pit's cracky wall and stopped my descent by the tips of my fingers. I breathed hard in the darkness of the pit while gripping the rock my hands had made into a makeshift life saver. But this wasn't going to hold me up for long. Either that, or I'd run out of energy and be forced to let go.

"Danny!" Seph screamed down from the edge of the pit. I looked up and saw his worried, terrified face in the dim light of his flashlight. He spotted me right away and allowed a brief look of relief show on his face, which was soon replaced with one of determination.

"I can't hang on for long!" I shouted up at him. It was hard to hear each other over the rumbling all around.

"Can you climb up?" Seph asked. "Maybe I can reach you that way."

I gritted my teeth in perseverance. Using as much energy as I could muscle, I reached up for another handhold on the rock wall. My feet found steady footholds, but they weren't much. My fingers found purchase and I began to slowly bring my body up. Suddenly my foothold gave out and I dropped back down to where I started with a gasp.

"Okay, stop, bad idea," Seph called down. He had seen my panicked expression with my little fall. He knew I was seconds away of totally freaking out. I couldn't fly or use any ghost strength. I was as useless as a weakened human! That was enough to push me over the edge, but I firmly held onto my sanity and waited for another suggestion from Seph.

"Do you trust me?" Seph asked me earnestly. I looked up at him, saying nothing. Oh no. What kind of crazy idea did he have now? My life was on the line here!

"Please, Danny, do you trust me?" Seph screamed. He knew time wasn't on our side. With each new rumble, he and Sam were in danger of getting hit by a rock. But he faithfully stayed at the edge of the pit.

"Yeah," I answered with a feeble nod. "Just do whatever you have in mind!"

Seph hastily took off his orange Camp Happy Hills T-shirt and began to use his teeth to rip the cotton fabric into one long piece of shirt. Both of us knew how risky this was, that was why he had asked my permission and trust first. He didn't want to be the one to kill me, but he saw no other way to save me.

The teen got onto his stomach and dropped down the shirt to me. With one small push, my hand found a hold on the flimsy shirt. It stretched under my weight. Seph grimaced when hearing the fabric rip around his two hand grip on it. As quick as my body let me, I struggled up the ripping shirt.

Then, as if it was miracle, my hand was in Seph's. We looked at each other and expressed relieved, strained grins. As if the kid was in the marines, he pulled me up over the edge of the pit. We didn't sit around to catch our breaths. The best I could manage was a thanks before Seph returned Sam to his back and we continued our run through the mine shaft.

"I am so glad I didn't kill you!" Seph told me as we ran side by side. We didn't care about the rocks anymore. We had wasted too much time in that pit. We had no more time to waste on being careful anymore.

"Me too!" I grinned back.

"Next time, let's use some rope," he shot back with his trademark inane grin.

"Great idea," I said sarcastically.

We were met with abrupt sunlight a second or two later when rounding our last corner. The entrance to the mine vibrated down a long shaft. Scummy, swamp water was sloshing down the dirt pathway. We splashed through it, our eyes set on the shiny exit that promised freedom. With each passing step, our hope of surviving swelled.

The feeling didn't last long. The second we burst out of the exit, the bright afternoon light blinded us momentarily. Seph cursed through narrowed eyes as he ran on ahead and through the sludge of the swamp. I followed after him, going waist deep in the gross, blackish greenish liquid.

We took to the roots after some fruitlessly slow minutes of treading through the swamp waters. I didn't care about leeches at this point. I was worried about that explosion. The earthquake was still going on under our feet. This explosion was guaranteed to do some damage.

Finally, we got to the bank of the swamp. The steep hill we now had to climb seemed impossible for me. I was so worn out. Adrenaline can only go so far. Seph was feeling the same as me. We took different sides of Sam and stove up the hill at a snail's pace. We used the dense pack of trees to help us climb. Somehow, we found ourselves standing at the top.

The explosion radiated out across the camp grounds a second later. The sound itself was deafening. A powerful heat wave crashed into our backs as we had been standing on the top of the cliff, and it forced Seph and I off our feet. All three of us tumbled forward and into the soft grass and leaves.

More discharges of massive heat waves emitted over our heads as we laid there, curled up in balls with hands over our heads for protection and in fear. Rock debris was flung from the mine as if there were merely being tossed by a toddler. The ground shook so violently under us, I thought my body was going to end up as jelly. But, eventually, the effects of the explosion began to die down. Then it stopped, it was done. Eric, the beast, its box, and Vlad, were gone.

"That was a disturbing wake up call," Sam moaned beside me.

Seph started to laugh. It began as a kind of crazy giggle, then became a full on laughing fit. Sam and I joined in. Soon, we were all laying there on the scorched ground laughing our heads off, holding onto our sore stomachs. With tired sighs, we stayed there on our backs and stared up at the beautiful summer sky through the burning trees.

We had done it. We had all saved the camp.

"You three!" a loud, barking voice interrupted our peaceful thoughts. I actually jumped at the noise. I heard the cocking of guns as five guys in full SWAT team-like armor surrounded us. We were too stunned to react as the main guy shouted at us, "Get up and put your hands in the air!"

Seph giggled without getting up like Sam and I were trying to do through aching bodies. "The backup actually came," he said with a grin. "Good job, guys," he said to the five, burly men with rifles aimed at us. He gave them a thumbs up and said, "Record timing."

A/N: 14 pages on my Mac laptop! 14! I'm pooped after writing this much in one weekend. But, yay, they saved the camp and Vlad got his butt kicking. That was a fun scene to write. But stick around, people. I have one last chapter for this fic before I'm done. I feel like those dumb commercials. "But wait! There's more!" The next chapter won't be long, so expect it on time next week. Please review! Thanks, and see you readers next weekend!


	18. Chapter 18 Congratulations!

A/N: So, the chapter came out longer than I planned it, but I don't care. It is a good ending to an extremely fun fan fiction. I'll talk more in my ending author's note. For the last time, enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: This will never get old. I don't own any Danny Phantom or CHERUB characters.

Chapter 18 Congratulations!

"Genius, you're still in ghost form," Sam whispered in my ear as the SWAT guys lead us back through the woods to the camp grounds.

"Oh jeez!" I panicked. "I didn't even realize!"

"Hey!" Seph suddenly called up to the lead guy of the team with combat gear and rifles. The man turned to see what the kid wanted with a confused look crossing his face. "We gotta take a piss," Seph said. "Mind if we go out here?"

"It's not my camp, kid," the leader said with a shrug.

"Cheers!" Seph said, guiding us off the path of police and SWAT guys running around like crazy. Some firefighters came barreling along with a long, thick hose in their hands. They were there to put out the fires, obviously.

We three drifted into the thick of the trees and bushes, out of sight of the five guys sent to take care of us. Once they found out who Seph was, they had let us put our hands down and treated us like normal teens. Seph stopped once we were under a good cover of green foliage.

"I don't have to go," I said, slightly confused. "What are we doing?"

Seph laughed at my puzzlement. "Just turn back human here," he said. "If we all pretend you looked that way since the start, they will have to believe us. I don't think the world is prepared to know about your ghost abilities. I will have to tell CHERUB of MI5, of course, but we have ways of keeping things like this secret."

"If you say so," I mumbled. All I could do was trust what he said was true. I let the white rings flash over my body, returning me to normal...and dropped straight to my butt in complete exhaustion. "Oh, wow," I said, holding my spinning head.

"You look wasted," Sam said as she lifted me to my feet with some of Seph's help. "You sure you can walk?"

"Yeah, I'm okay," I answered with a nod. They let me go and I felt fine enough to walk, but I had to concentrate on every step to keep my balance or keep from collapsing with fatigue. We walked back to the five guys waiting for us. They all shot me confused, perplexed looks as I walked up with my two friends. I had turned from a white haired, green eyed teen to a burned out, black haired and blue eyed kid who looked sleep deprived...which I was. How long had it been since some real sleep? (Passing out from a concussion doesn't count.) At least more than 24 hours.

"Where did the other one go?" the leader of the team asked Seph.

"What other one?" Seph asked with a tilt of his head.

"Who's this kid?" the leader asked.

"He's been here since the beginning," Sam butted in with one of her rebel Goth glares that seemed to always make scared adults back off. It was this poor guy's first time with it. He hesitated, looking at one of the other guys on his team for some support. All he got was a shrug.

"We'll look into it later," the leader said, still puzzled over the subject. But no one dared to go against Sam's glare. When no one was looking, I shot her a grin. She gave me a sneaky smirk back.

The SWAT team guys lead us all the way back to the camp. As we passed by the cabins, kids and teens were coming out with other SWAT guys escorting them to safety, which was where we were heading. Police were swarming the place, questioning every adult they could get their hands on about what had happened. More firefighters ran past us once with more hoses. I looked behind me to see that the fire was still going back at the mine, but the firefighters were there on time. It wouldn't take long to be put out.

"Oh my gosh! Look, Danny!" Sam gasped as she spotted something. She stopped dead in her tracks while latching onto arm to keep me there with her. I looked to where she was staring and felt an overwhelming surge of joy.

Jazz was sitting on her cabin's front door stairs with an ice pack held to her head. Some of her campers were sitting there with her and another teen counselor I didn't know. She hadn't seen me yet because she was talking pleasantly to one of her campers that was crying slightly. She must have felt my stare, because she soon looked up and saw me standing there like a dope.

"Danny!" she called my name. Her voice held relief and elation in it. She sprung up from her seat, forgetting the kid. I think I was too stunned just watching her run toward me to move. It wasn't till her arms were around my neck in a giant sibling hug that I grinned and hugged her back.

"Are you okay?" I asked her, tears in my eyes. I swallowed hard while frantically searching her body up and down for any kind of anomaly.

"I'm fine," Jazz said with a flip of her orange ponytail. She gently brushed my tears off my cheeks while saying, "Don't cry, Danny. I'm perfectly okay. I don't remember a few days, except for a dream about a gross swamp, but I'm fine now. If you exclude the slight headache." Here, she hung her head in shame and said quietly, "But I'm sorry for not believing you about that monster thing. It was really mean and stupid of me."

I was caught off guard by the apology. I'd totally forgotten that she hadn't believed me about Amanda and the beast. It all seemed so trivial now. Without thinking, I gave a laugh at the irony of it all. She didn't seem to understand or like that.

"I'm just glad to see you alive!" I said when she shot me a glare. I hugged her again, to her surprise, and asked, "Is mom and dad here?"

She rolled her eyes. "They're freaking out about ghosts like always," she huffed. She folded her arms in front of her to dispel her anger. "They're also looking for you like crazy. You should go find for them before they get out the megaphone. But before that, go get fixed up. Is that blood on your wrists? And what happened to your nose? It looks bruised."

I hid my chafed and bloody wrists behind my back quickly. She was going to go all overprotective sister on me if I didn't get away fast. I was glad to see her okay, but already I needed my space. Backing up, I said to her with a smile, "I'll go do that."

She glanced over to my friends and escorting SWAT team dudes without any interest till she spotted Seph. "Is that Seph?" she asked me skeptically after she cheerfully waved at Sam, who waved back with a roll of her eyes.

"I'll tell you about it later," I said, running off to avoid her glare. I joined back up with the group and we began our journey back to the dirt parking lot at the front of the camp. It was where the center of operations was taking place. Paramedics were there, rushing from ambulance to ambulance to diagnose the few traumatized kids who actually remembered the beast. Most kids just had memory loss and headaches, though. Police cruisers, SWAT vans, and fire trucks were all parked haphazardly. All different kinds of people flocked the place.

We came just as a Guys In White van swerved up to the end of the parking lot. The doors burst open and a flood of the white suited men ran out with ghost gear in hand. They all ran by us without even a single glance toward their teen spy, Seph. My parents were going to have a fit when they saw the competition.

Two important people found us in the chaos of the crowd. One was a woman of maybe thirty years old. She had her hair pulled up in a messy ponytail. Dark circles were under her concerned eyes. She gave off a very mom-ish air. Right behind her was a man who looked like her husband and held a cute toddler in one strong hand and had a navy blue T-shirt in the other.

"Oh, James!" the woman said when she had spotted our group. The SWAT guys left us there after a nod from the man with the toddler. The woman pushed her way through the throng of people to get to us. Her eyes were pinned on Seph.

"James?" I asked Seph with a raised eyebrow. "Is that your real name?"

Seph wasn't paying attention to me. I could see he was fighting back tears as he watched the family surge through the crowd to get to him. Finally, the woman stood in front of Seph. She swooped him up in a quick hug. Some solace formed on her face as a smile came to her lips.

"Uh, James, you scared the heck out of me when you called all frantic like that," she breathed while pulling away. "Oh, look at you," she said with a sigh. "Where is your shirt? You and your friends need to get some medical help. Danny looks horrible."

"This your mom, dude?" I asked Seph.

The man with the toddler laughed at my question and the surprised expressions both the woman and Seph wore. "Zara just thinks she's his mum," he chuckled at his wife, "But she is now the chairman of CHERUB, which James works for. He was just lucky we were in the States at the time he called, or none of this could have been arranged so quickly. James told me on the phone that he told you guys he was a spy. How did that happen?"

"It wasn't his fault," Sam defended Seph or James. The name change was hard for me at first. "Vlad figured it out himself, and Danny kind of overheard. He can still be a spy and all, right?" Both Seph/James and I were surprised by her protective behavior for the teen. She must have really grown to like him. Usually it took her years to open up and be friends with someone.

"Calm down, Sam," Zara said with a warm smile. "Ewart and I know how to deal with this kind of stuff." She frowned in thought before adding, "Of course you'll have to sign a few papers restricting you from speaking of James and what happened here for the rest of your lives, but none of this is threatening to his career as a CHERUB."

Sam and I gave each other a weary glance. Imagine having to keep our mouths shut about this whole ordeal with Tucker breathing questions down our backs. That would be a challenge in itself.

"I want James!" the toddler in Ewart's arms squealed. He leaned forward to grab James.

Ewart handed James the navy blue shirt he had been holding. "Put that on before you hold him, James," Ewart told the teen. "You're filthy!" James laughed while pulling the shirt over his head. He was then handed the toddler. I never imaged Seph being so great with kids. It was kind of odd to see.

"After this, you might want to change that shirt to a black one," Zara commented with a small smile.

James's eyes brightened when hearing this. "You mean it?" he asked with a delighted grin. "A black shirt! Yes! That means Lauren can stop rubbing hers in my face!"

"I don't get it," I said to Sam.

"Some James Bond inside joke, I'm sure," she said, smirking. "I don't get it either."

-Few Hours Later-

"You're a trooper, kid," the paramedic said to me with a smile. He was older, maybe in his fifties. His face was already beginning to wrinkle, but in a good way with laugh lines. His eyes held a kindness in them for ones my age that was rare these days. I didn't mind him patching me up all that afternoon.

I had seen my parents hours before. Seeing them had sprouted a fresh set of tears. It was very reassuring to see and hug them again. My dad was chatting about the quantities of ghost energy in the area as my mom had shooed me off to the back of an ambulance. It was exactly how I predicted. Mom being overprotective and dad being...well dad. It was nice.

As the paramedic had cleaned and stitched up my head, checked my bruised nose for any broken bones, and dressed my wrists, I was constantly met with people from the camp. Amanda had showed up and gave me a stunning kiss on my forehead. That had been a nice, but somehow awkward encounter. I was glad to know she was okay. After that, my campers came in a swarm of excited cries. I avoided the questions about where Eric was. But they were fun to see. I was truly sad to say goodbye to all of them. Lastly, the little girl from my first nightmare shyly came up to me and thanked me for helping her before dashing off with flushed cheeks of embarrassment. She was a cute one.

Later on Sam came to give me some lunch she had rustled up from the Mess Hall. We ate there at the back of the ambulance some soggy sandwiches that were the best things I'd ever eaten. I had been starving for hours till she showed up with those sandwiches. It was nice to finally kick back and relax with Sam. We actually got to talk and joke around about random things. I really enjoyed her company.

All too soon, she had to leave. Her grandma had driven all the way down from Amity Park to pick her up because her parents were off on vacation to Fiji or some place with a beach in the sun where Sam refused to go. Instead, she had come here at Jazz's request to help me handle Vlad. I wondered if she ever regretted that choice.

Now the paramedic was wrapping my wrists in gauze. They stung after the alcohol cleaning, but the ointment he had put on was helping with the throbbing. I was just glad that he didn't ask me where the scars had come from. That would have been difficult to answer, 'cause I couldn't just say I phased through the cuffs.

"Okay, Danny, I'm going to go find some more gauze for you to take home," the paramedic told me as he climbed out of the ambulance. I sat down on the metal ledge outside the doors and nodded to him. "Then you can be on your way," he said before walking away.

"Hot chocolate, mate?" James said, holding up a steamy Styrofoam cup of the warm brown liquid. He had somehow appeared beside me.

I smiled at him before taking mine from his one hand. He held his in the other. "Thanks, dude," I said. "All those pain killer pills that guy gave me is making my throat dry."

James chuckled at this. "Hey," he said while walking off, "I have one little thing to do with Zara and Ewart. Stay there. I'll be back in five minutes."

"Sure," I called back. I didn't mind waiting. I was just glad to finally relax. It seemed like forever I'd been on the run. Even before camp, I'd been ghost fighting all night and day with little sleep. Here, it was one scary disaster after another. Just sitting there thinking to myself without any stress was a vacation in itself.

The night was cool and calming. Crickets sung in the distance. Bugs were flying erratically around the flood lights keeping the camp grounds alive. It was still buzzing with straggling police and kids, some Guys In White men who were going crazy at the destroyed mine, and my ghost hunting parents of course. The fire had long been put out, but the fresh smell of burnt wood and smoke still hung in the natural pine smelling air.

I took a long sip of my drink, loving the hot sensation of it burn down my throat as I swallowed the chocolaty substance. Silently, I took in my surroundings with a content, warm feeling in me. I couldn't help but smile a little to myself.

"I see you're enjoying the sights, Daniel," a voice said from right beside me.

The gasp was stalled in my throat as my whole body froze in fear. I forced myself to move and turned to look at Vlad. He sat there, only a few inches away from me, looking as relaxed as I had just been. A small, knowing smirk adorned his lips. His eyes were settled on me, taking my reaction in with amused interest.

"Did you really believe you could get rid of me that easily?" he asked me with a slight laugh. "Please don't look so surprised to see me," he continued. "It does something to my pride."

"No," I whispered, my voice cracking. I made the action to move away and get up. His hand shot out and grabbed my arm in a vice grip. Deftly, he pulled me close to him and slung an arm around my shoulders as if we were a close uncle and nephew. I couldn't breath properly. My hands holding the hot chocolate cup shook uncontrollably.

"Here, let me take that from you," Vlad said kindly. With his other hand, he lifted the cup out of my hands and placed it on the other side of him. "Wouldn't want that burning your hands."

"What do you want with me?" I whispered. I still didn't trust my voice. I'd left this guy for dead in a crumbling mine that had been about to explode. He had all the reason in the world to cream or even kill me right now. I was confused by all this friendly behavior. It put all my senses on edge.

"Oh, I want to congratulate you," Vlad said. He turned me toward him with a light push of my shoulder. He took both my shoulders in his hands and lowered his head so he could look into my face to say, "You won, Daniel. You beat me fair and square. You exceeded all my expectations, I must say."

"You aren't making any sense," I said, my voice quiet and my tone weary.

"Would you have felt better if I'd come in blasting away?" Vlad asked with a half grin. "I can still do that, you know."

"No, I don't understand," I said in frustrating confusion. "You...you were supposed to be dead, okay? And what is with the nice act? It's freaking creepy!"

Angry now, I tried pulling away. Vlad laughed at my heated expression. His grip was strong on my arm and easily kept me seated there next to him. I couldn't keep the disgusted look off my face as I was forced to sit there next to my arch enemy.

"What's with the bitter frown, Daniel?" he asked sardonically. "We both know that if I wasn't here to keep you in line, you'd have such a boring, easy life. I keep your life interesting. Besides, who wants a sappy happily ever after ending where the villain dies and the hero is all happy?"

"I do!" I snapped back, my voice full of unbridled emotion. I fixed Vlad a glare, waiting for his response. At first he just studied my face, expressionless. Then he gave me a chilling smile.

"I know you don't mean that," Vlad said. "You love fighting too much. You love the power. Today was only a small taste of what you can do. I can teach you how to control that anger and use it to strengthen your power. You have so much hidden talent, Danny. It's remarkable, really."

"Wow, I don't know whether to be flattered or be totally creeped out," I remarked with a look of outrage. "I'm not interested in your stupid offer, Vlad," I spelled out clearly for the man. "And I never will be. Get that? Now let go!"

"What offer?" Vlad asked sneakily. He lifted a lone eyebrow as he watched my multiple reactions. First there was anger. I hated that sly, smug smirk! Then there was confusion. What was he hinting at? Lastly, there was fear. Something evil was being planned in that head of his. Whatever it was, I for sure wasn't going to like it.

"Whatever you're planning with me, forget it, Vlad!" I hissed right into his uncaring face. "I'm not your game, your pawn, or anything close to a guinea pig. Leave me alone!"

Vlad rolled his eyes. "Don't be so over dramatic," he said. He chuckled lightly while saying, "It's not like I can just force you to do anything at this point. But let's not forget that you still remembered my offer from when we first met about joining me. I didn't know you had the capacity to remember that far back, but you do. That means you've thought about it."

He had caught the uncertainty in my eyes and grasped at it. He leaned in close while bringing me near and asked evilly, "You've thought about it, haven't you? Don't try to hide it, boy. Your emotions are like an open book."

"So I've had trouble with my powers," I grumbled, "and sometimes I wish for help. That doesn't mean I think about coming to you all the time. I'm doing fine without you." To emphasize my point, I phased through his hand around my arm and stood up crossing my arms.

"So you are," Vlad said with a bored sigh. "And I do have to remind myself that you're merely a child. You aren't capable to making good decisions yet. But, so you know, the offer is still open."

He got to his feet and adjusted his clean and tidy suit, noticing with a smile as I took a step back to keep a gap between us. With those critical eyes, he looked me up and down once more. I felt uncomfortable under that gaze. It was like he was summing me up to add a file of me into the bank of information in that big head of his for future wicked reference. I got the feeling that he was currently strategizing that perpetual chess game he played called life, with me being a big part of it.

I didn't have the will power or the guts to speak up against him. I felt a surge of helplessness as I stood there staring at my enemy. It was as if he was playing chess...and the rest of the world was playing checkers.

I had beaten him this one time, but how many times could I keep on winning? I'd laid down everything to defeat him today. I didn't have the energy to do that every time I wanted to pull out a win. Even with this win, it was still demoralizing because I saw the long rough road ahead so clearly now with Vlad.

It was then and there that I decided that I as a superhero was prepared to battle whatever was thrown at me. Vlad might be scary and seemingly all powerful, but today proved to me that I could win against him despite all odds. My feud with Vlad was going to be difficult as always, but there was going to be a lot more victories under my belt in the future.

"Well, Daniel," Vlad sighed, still smiling, "I have your town to look after. I'll see you back in Amity Park soon. Tell your beautiful mother I said hi."

"Sure, V-man," I shot back slyly, "I'll tell her that her 40-year-old fruit loop stalker enjoyed giving her kids a vacation from hell. She'll love it." Vlad looked unperturbed, but I knew I had annoyed him or at least struck a chord.

"I see that your witty banter is there as always," Vlad pointed out.

"With you, Vlad, it's all too easy," I smirked. I was rewarded with a brief frown, which totally made my day.

Vlad soon replaced it with a curious expression as he looked over my shoulder into the distance. A moment later he looked back down at me, smoothly placing his hands in his trouser pockets. Whatever he had seen was ignored now as he bent down to my eye level and said, "Till next time, Daniel."

He then walked into the darkness of the night, leaving me, his miserable camp, and the destroyed beast behind. I silently watched him go. At least with Vlad, he let me lick my wounds and move on before attacking again. It was time for both of us to rest up for the next battle.

That weird feeling of someone watching me soon pulled me out of my musings. I spun around in interest of seeing who was staring at me. A lone kid was leaning against a cabin on the outskirts of the camp grounds next to the half filled parking lot. He smiled at me.

I froze in jaw dropping shock. It was Eric.

Eric's shoulders moved as he chuckled at my astonished reaction. He was too far away for me to even yell over to, so all I did was stare, slack jawed in wonder. Was my mind playing tricks on me, or was Eric really alive and well and standing there? It blowed my whole mind away.

I knew it was Eric when he gave me that soul searching stare. He stood up straight and put a finger to his lips, grinning at my confusion.

"Hey, spacey kid!" James shouted over to me with a laugh. I was jerked out of my trance and looked over to see the British teen walking briskly toward me. "What has got your attention?" he asked brightly.

"Seph, I just saw..." I began with excitement.

"It's James," James corrected with annoyance. Muttering, he said, "Is it that bloody hard?"

"Sorry," I said in a rush. "But look over there. I just saw..." The words stopped in mid sentence when I looked back to Eric and found him gone. James looked to where I was pointing with an annoyed sigh. He glanced back at me then to the empty spot where Eric used to be, debating if I was crazy or not.

"That's a cabin, mate," he said finally and took a long swig of his drink.

I decided that he'd never believe me anyways. James was just like that. Even till the end, I don't think he even believed Eric was an angel. If I told him that Eric had been there, he would have laughed in my face and walked away.

"Forget it," I sighed.

"What were we talking about?" James asked in mid slurp. I saw that his table manners hadn't been a facade this whole time. I watched as he craned his neck back to get the last drop of hot chocolate. When he was done, he used the back of his hand to wipe off any excess stuff on his face.

"What did you need to talk to me about before you left?" I asked him now that he was done devouring his drink.

James's eyes lit up with recognition. "Yeah," he said with a nod. "I know you probably have a million of things to do and you've already done so many things for me, but I want to ask you a favor."

"A favor?" I asked, skeptical. Crap. He hadn't been faking his craziness after all.

"Yeah, like between friends," James said hopefully.

"Friends?" I questioned.

"What? You thought since befriending you was my job that after all of this was done, I wouldn't still be?" he asked with a cruel smile. I didn't say anything. A second later he scoffed, "Let's just say that sometimes I take my work serious. I might have lied about a lot of things, but I don't think I could have faked our friendship. Now are you going to do me a favor or what?"

"What do you have in mind?" I asked with a sly grin.

"Nothing special," James said with pretend innocence. "It's just a little overdue payback."

"I'm in," I said. "But you have to cough up fifty bucks. And the pool is heated at night, so you don't have to worry about freezing to death after your diving board jump tonight."

"Never coming to a bloody American summer camp EVER again," James growled under his breath.

-Epilogue-

Lauren Adams was beyond worn out. The second all the CHERUB kids had come back from holiday, the teachers there on campus had piled on the work with hours worth of homework and grueling workouts to get all the kids back into shape. After three months of waking up whenever she wanted and eating whatever she liked, Lauren found herself having trouble bouncing back to the normal CHERUB strict system.

The eleven-year-old groaned as she walked down the dimmed hallway to her room. She had just remembered that she had to get up at seven the next morning for her second day of her six-week advanced combat course with Miss Takada at her dojo.

That was going to be hell. She was the youngest girl in her class. Everyone else there was at least 14. That meant she got most of the beatings because she was so small. But she really needed the training. And her idiot older brother, James, completed it. She could too.

Speaking of her brother, James had made numerous threats of getting her back for that time she put eggs inside his shorts pockets. She had been bold enough to leave a note behind, which was a mistake on her part. Now he was out for revenge. But no worries. James was stupid and had no way of getting her back if she was just extra careful.

Her room was dark as she entered it after a long, tiring day of school and training. She paused after turning on the lights and locked and bolted the door to make sure James would stay out. The hairs on her arms and the back of her neck stood up. She saw nothing, but the creepy sensation of something...otherworldly still haunted her senses.

It was odd.

Shrugging, Lauren ignored it. The last thing she needed was to adopt her brother's strange new belief in ghosts and the like. After his last mission, James would sometimes bring the subject up. His sister wondered what had happened during that mission and questioned his sanity.

The girl took a long, hot shower and got ready for bed. She sighed in relief while crawling into her bed and turned all the lights out. Finally she could relax her sore and aching body. She needed the sleep for tomorrow.

_Splat._

With a small gasp, Lauren sat up in bed and turned on her bedside table lamp. She could have sworn she had heard something land on her bed. Something gooey with a yellow center laid at the foot of her bed. Was that an egg? Was a chicken caught in her ceiling?

_Splat._

Lauren gave a sharp scream when another egg landed right on her head. The yellow yoke soiled her recently cleaned and washed hair. The goo dripped down her dark locks, making the girl gasp in horror.

"The bloody hell is going on here?" Lauren swore in total confusion and anger.

By mistake, she looked up to see where the eggs were coming from. Before she could get a good look, another egg's insides splattered across her face. The girl shrieked.

Danny revealed himself as he laughed at the desired reaction from the girl. He had been hovering over her with a basket full of eggs. Lauren was gasping and throwing the egg off her face in anger. Then she heard the ghost and looked up in shock and fear. Danny waved, smiling inanely. Lauren had never seen a ghost...and so freaked.

She let out one long, terrified scream that reverberated out of her room and woke the whole floor. Danny cringed at the sound. When she was done, he grinned down at her and turned the whole basket upside down. The eggs rained down on her and the bed, covering the whole surface with yellow and clear goo and crunchy shells.

"Here," Danny said while reaching out with a hand. The girl sunk deeper into her egg covered bed, scared out of her mind at the sight of Danny. He opened a fist and let a blue sticky note flitter down to her chest.

He then vanished before her very eyes with a laugh.

Breathing hard and thoroughly drenched in egg whites and yokes, Lauren raised a shaking hand to the note. She read it a few times in astonishment and disbelief. Then, as the words finally sunk in, the fear was quickly replaced by pure rage.

Slipping on the eggs, Lauren crawled out of her ruined bed. She ran for the door and flung it open, her blinding anger making all her movements hard and careless. Some kids watched the girl from their doors as she sprinted to the stairs. Some dared some snickers at her gooey condition.

Lauren arrived at her brother's door and slammed it open with a roar of outrage. James was sitting on the edge of his bed, grinning down at a mystery, black haired friend sitting on the floor. They both looked up as she barged in and stared for a long second, taking her in. She was a sight to see, with egg dripping off her hair, face, and clothes. It was the ultimate payback for the teen.

Both boys exploded with uncontrollable laughter. James fell right off his perch on the bed, he was laughing so hard at his furious little sister. Danny and James had to hold onto their aching sides as they kept laughing. Lauren stood at the door, heaving in deep gasps for air in anger and humiliation.

"What the hell, James?" she screamed down at him.

James and Danny took a few more seconds to compose themselves enough to talk, although the speech was interrupted by constant giggles and smiles.

"You had that one coming, Lauren," James explained. "I told you that I'd get you back."

"That was months ago!" Lauren spat back. "And what's with the bloody 'I love you, sis' note?" she asked while throwing the curled up sticky note at her brother. She watched in dismay as it got stuck in a tangle of goo in her palm and didn't go even as far as two meters from her hand. This set off another burst of laughs from the boys.

"I thought you liked eggs," James said with feign innocence. This one pushed Danny into another laughing fit.

"I'm a freaking vegan!" Lauren screamed. "Vegans don't eat eggs!" She only got the response of more laughter. Finally she growled in anger and frustration before screaming at James, "Piss off!" Then she slammed the door behind her and stomped off.

When the two boys had calmed down, Danny grinned at his friend and said, "I wonder if Vlad likes eggs."

Soul Searching

By: Pixiegirl13

A/N: Thought I'd end it on a fun note. What's funny is that I'd forgotten that the women's name was Zara...and I have a character named Zara from another fan fic. Somehow that amuses me. Yes, ignore my weirdness.

Anyway, I'd like to thank you awesome readers! Even if you didn't review, I still love getting hits. But you reviewers really carried me through the fic. I was so skeptical that this would be a flop, especially sense it was in Danny's POV. But your support and great feedback helped me a lot.

And don't think I'm done writing creepy old Vlad. He's an awesome villain and I plan on writing another fan fiction with him all in it and screwing up poor Danny's life. I have some evil plans for the two bouncing around in my head at the moment.

Well, I'm sad to say that this is the end and goodbye. Thanks again you guys! I'll be answering all your reviews for this chapter. I'm out of here!


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